life+ egyptian vulture new life: urgent actions to...

LIFE+ EgyptIan VuLturE nEw LIFE: urgEnt actIons to strEngthEn thE BaLkan

popuLatIon oF thE EgyptIan VuLturE and sEcurE Its FLyway

LIFE16 nat/Bg/000874

FIrst rELEasE oF captIVE-BrEd EgyptIan VuLturEs In BuLgarIa

tEchnIcaL rEport

1 www.LifeNeophron.eu

Contents

Preface �� 2

Summary �� 3

Introduction �� 4

Methodology �� 5

Chronology �� 5

Origin of the birds �� 5

Releasing method �� 5

Results �� 7

Releaseandpost-fledgingbehavior �� 7

Migration �� 7

Regina �� 7

Lom �� 8

Elodie �� 9

Post-migrationfate �� 10

Conclusivenotes �� 12

References �� 13

Annexes �� 14


PrefaCe

about the project

ThisreportwaspreparedfortheaimofactionC3oftheproject“UrgentActionstoStrengthentheBalkanPopulationoftheEgyptianVultureandSecureItsFlyway”(LIFE16NAT/BG/000874),fundedbytheEuropeanCommissionandco-fundedby“A.G.Leventis”Foundation.

Organisations and institutions involved

Organisation/Institution Activities implemented

BulgarianSocietyfortheProtectionofBirds Planning,coordinationandreleases(BSPB)/BirdLifeBulgaria

DirectorateofNaturePark“RussenskiLom” Supplementaryfeedingsanddailyobservations

PragueZoo&EuropeanAssociationofZoos Captive breeding, provision and transportation of theandAquaria(EAZA) fledglings

GreenBalkans Hackbuildingandvideosurveillanceinstallment

ManagementUnitoftheBiosphereReserve FieldsurveyinNiger,preliminaryreportofGadabeji

SaharaConservationFund(SCF) CoordinationoftheworkinNiger

VultureConservationFoundation(VCF) Networkingandstrategicguidanceontherelease methods

Recommended citation

Arkumarev,V.,Mourtala,S.M.,Rabeil,T.,Apeverga,P.Dobrev,V.&NikolovS.C.2018.Firstreleaseofcaptive-bred EgyptianVultures inBulgaria. Technical report under actionC3 theproject LIFE16NAT/BG/000874.BSPB,SCF&APLORI.Sofia.14p.


summary

TheBalkan EgyptianVulture populationhas declinedwith 80%over the last 30 yearswith a 7% annualdecrease rate.Despite the implementationofvariousconservationmeasures thespecies’negative trendhasnotbeenreversed.Therefore,morecomprehensiveapproachisneededtoensurethesurvivaloftheremainingBalkanpopulation.Reinforcementofthepopulationwithreleasesofcaptive-bredEgyptianVulturesneedstobeimplementedsimultaneouslywiththein-situconservationmeasures.In2016thefirstreleasesofcaptive-bredEgyptianVulturestookplaceinBulgaria.ThreejuvenileswereprovidedbythePragueZooandweretransportedtothehackingsiteinRusenskiLomNatureParkinNorthernBulgaria.Twoofthevultureswerebrotherandsister(LomandRegina)raisedbyapairwithTurkishorigin.Thethirdjuvenile(Elodie)wasraisedbyapairofFrenchorigin.TheyoungEgyptianVultureswerekeptinthehackfor16daysuntiltheyhavefullydevelopedandadaptedtotheplace.LomandReginafledgedonthesamedaywhenthehackwasopen,Elodiefledgedsixdayslater.Allthreevultureswerefittedwithsatellitetransmittersinordertofollowtheirmovementsandmigration.Afterthereleasethebirdswereregularlyvisitingthesupplementaryfeedingstationsituatednearthehackingsiteandwereobservedto interactwiththe localbreedingpair.Reginastarteditssouthmigrationfirstonly6daysaftertherelease.Lomstartedhismigration4dayslater.BothvultureswerefollowingsimilarmigrationroutecrossingthroughtheDardanellesandmigratingthroughWesternAnatoliainTurkey.TheybothreachedtheAdrasanPeninsulaanddecidedtocrosstheseareachingCyprus.AfterwardsbothReginaandLomcontinuedsouthwestandwereflyingovertheseaalongsideandnotfarfromthecoast.However,duetounknownreasonstheydidn’treachthecoastandfinallydrownedinto the sea. Elodie started itsmigration last and chosedifferentmigration route. Shemigrated throughGreeceandsuccessfullycrossedtheMediterraneanSeabetweenCreteandLibya.ShewaswinteringinNigerwhereinSeptember2017waskilledbylocalpeopleforbushmeat.

WecanconcludethatthereleasedyoungEgyptianVulturesthroughthemethodofhackingadaptedwelltothelocalconditionsandfledgedatsimilarageastheirwildconspecifics.Ourobservationsconfirmedthattheavailabilityofqualityfoodinsatisfyingquantityatthefeedingstationisimportanttoattractandholdthereleasedvulturesinthevicinityofthereleasesite.Twoofthereleasedvulturesstartedtheirmigrationfollowing themainmigration route of the Bulgarianwild population but due to unknown reasons theyundertookanoverseaflight throughCyprusandeventuallydied.Differentreleasetechniqueshavetobetested in futureandtheirsuccesstobescientificallyevaluated inordertochoosewhichmethod ismostsuccessfulandgivesthebestresultsforreinforcementoftheEgyptianVulturepopulationontheBalkan.


IntROductIOn

TheEgyptianVulture(Neophronpercnopterus,Linnaeus1758)isamediumsizedopportunisticscavengerwithabroaddistributionthroughoutthesouthernPalaearcticandNorthAfrica(Bothaetal.2017).Thespe-ciesislistedintheIUCNRedListasEndangeredbecauseofconsistentandsteepdeclinesinitspopulationsthroughout itsrange(Birdlife International2008).Especiallycritical isthestatusofthepopulationontheBalkans,whereithasdeclinedbyover80%forthelast30yearsandthepopulationcurrentlyconsistsoflessthan70pairs(Velevskietal.2015).ThereisawiderangeofthreatsthattheBalkanpopulationfacesinitsbreedinggrounds(Saraviaetal.2016)andalongitsmigrationflyway(Nikolovetal.2016),themainamongstwhichinclude:non-intentionalpoisoning,electrocutionbypowerlines,directpersecution(incl.forbushmeatandbelief-baseduseinthewinteringgrounds),disturbance,reducedfoodavailabilityandhabitatchange.RecentpopulationviabilityanalysesshowthatthespeciesmightgetextinctfromFYRofMacedoniainthenext25yearsunlessimmediateandeffectiveconservationactionsareundertaken(Velevskietal.2014).OneofthesuggestedapproachesbytheauthorstosavetheBalkanpopulationisthroughreinforcementofthepopulationwithreleasesofcaptive-bredindividualswhichhastobeimplementedsimultaneouslywithin-situconservationmeasures.LargescaleofconservationmeasureshasbeenappliedforthespeciesontheBalkansbuttheyseemnoteffectiveenoughtohaltthepopulationdecline.Therefore,morecomprehensiveapproachisneededtostabilizetheremainingpopulationofthespecies.

Reinforcementofpopulationswithcaptive-bredindividualsiswidelyusedapproachintheconservationofmanyspecies.However,thepracticalexperiencewithreleasingcaptive-bredEgyptianvulturesontheBal-kansislackingandtheforeseenexperimentalintroductioninBulgariawillsignificantlycontributetotheac-cumulationofmoreknowledgeinthisarea.Inthelong-run,suchactionswillunderlineaprogramforactivereinforcementofthewildpopulationandsecuringitsfutureinthecountryandtheregion.Differentstrate-giesforreleasesofcaptive-bredindividualshavetobetestedandtheresultsscientificallyevaluated.Herewepresentdataonthefirstreleasesthroughhackingmethodofjuvenilecaptive-bredEgyptianVulturesinBulgaria.Westudiedthepost-releasebehaviorofthefledglings,theirmigrationroutesandsurvival.


MethOdOlOgy

chronology

Activity date/periodDeliveryofthebirds 10.08.2016Adaptationperiod 10.08.2016–26.08.2016Openingofthehack 26.08.2016Startoffirstmigration Between02.09.2016and26.09.2016

Origin of the birds

ThreejuvenileEgyptianVultureswereprovidedbythePragueZoowithintheframeworkoftheEuropeanEndangeredSpeciesPrograms(EEP)oftheEuropeanAssociationofZoosandAquaria(EAZA),bycourtesyoftheVultureConservationFoundation(VCF)(Pic.1).Twoofthevultureswerefemales–ElodieandRegina,namedaftertheirzookeepers.Thethirdfledglingwasmale-Lom,namedaftertheNatureParkwhereitwasreleased.LomandReginaarebrotherandsisterraisedintheViennaZoobyadultpairofTurkishorigin.Re-ginahatchedon01/06/2016andLomhatched5dayslateron06/06/2016.ThethirdjuvenileElodiehatchedon16/06/2016intheParisZoobyapairofPyreneanorigin,butwasraisedbyexperiencedpairinPragueZoo.ForsummarizeddetailsonthebirdsseeAnnexI.

Picture 1.Captive-bredjuvenileEgyptianvulturesprovidedbyEAZAforreleaseinBulgaria

Releasing method

Asafirstreleasesiteforcaptive-bredEgyptianVulturesinBulgariawasselectedNatureParkRusenskiLomwhichissituatedinthenorthernpartofthecountry.Itincludeshugeplateaurivervalleywithdenseshrubvegetationandhighcliffcomplexes.ThisisthesmallestoftheremainingEgyptianVulturebreedingclustersinBulgariaholding1-2breedingpairsinthelastyears.Thenumberofthebreedingpairsintheareahascon-siderablydroppedoverthelast12yearsfrom9to1(Kurtevetal.2007).AsitisapilotreleaseontheBalkansthestrategywastoreleasethejuvenilesinsuitablehabitat,withfunctionalfeedingstationinthevicinityofthehackingsite,localcapacity,easyaccessforfooddeliveryanddailyobservations,presenceofconspecificsbreedingpairsintheareabutstillfarenoughinordertoavoidpotentialaggressiveinteractionsbetweentheterritorial pairs and the released birds on the feeding site�


ThehackingmethodwasselectedforreleasingthebirdsbasedontheguidelinesprovidedbyVCF(Velevskietal.2016).Thismethodhasbeensuccessfullytestedforreleasesofcaptive-bredEgyptianVulturesinItaly(Ceccolini&Cenerini2005)andIsrael.Therewasanoldhackthatwasrenovatedandadaptedfortheneedsofexperiment.Thehackwasbuiltinabigcliffcavitybyclosingthefrontwithawirenetinordertoprotectthebirdsfrompredatorsandtopreventearlyfledging.Acameraconnectedtoamonitorwasinstalledinsidethehackandpowersuppliedbysolarcells.Regina,LomandElodieweretransportedtothehackingsiteon10/08/2016atagerespectively71,66and54days.Theywereallringedandtaggedwith45gMicrowaveArgos/GPSsatellitetransmitterswhichmadepossibletofollowtheirmovementsanddiscovertheirfateaftertherelease(Pic.2).Thismethodwaspreviouslyappliedtowindindividualsandwasfoundtoveryefficientforthispurpose(Oppeletal.2015).Beforethereleasetheyweresuppliedwithfood(wholeratsandpiecesoflamb)andwateronadailybasisthroughspecialpipestoavoidanycontactwithpeople(Pic.3).Thethreefledglingswereobserveddailyformaremoteobservationpointandthroughthecamerainstalledinthehack(Pic.4).Thehackwassituatednearavulturefeedingsite.Thefeedingsitewasclearedfromtheshrubbyvegetationandgrass.AfewdaysbeforethereleasegroundteamfromtheDirectorateoftheNatureParkandBSPBstartedprovidingfoodattheplace(foodthatvultureswerealreadyfamiliar,butalsonewitemsofpartsofwholebodiesofdomesticanimals–e.g.pigs,thatfurtheronvulturescanfindinthewild).TwoEgyptianVulturedecoysweremountedonthefeedingsitetoattractthefledglingsandshowthemwherethesafesourceoffoodislocated.Oneofthedecoysdepictedadultvultureandtheotheroneajuvenile(Pic.5).

Picture 2.Taggingthevultureswithsatellitetransmittersbeforeplacingthemintothehack.

Picture 3. Specialtubesforremotelyprovidingfoodandwaterforthevulturesinthehack.

Picture 4.Installingvideosurveillanceinthehack. Picture 5.MountingtheEgyptianvulturedecoysat thefeedingstation.


Results

Release and post-fledging behavior

On26/08/2016,aftertwoweeksacclimatizationperiodthehackwasopened.Theperiodoverlappedwiththefirstflightsofthefledglingfromthewildnestintheregion.Lom(aged82days)leftthehackfirstsameday,shortlyfollowedbyhissisterRegina(aged87days)(Pic.6).Duringthefirstdaybothfledglingswereexercisinginflyingandlanding,investigatingtheclosesurroundingsofthehack.IntheeveningReginawasroostingnear thehackingsitewhile Lomchosea tree to spend thenight.On thesecondday theadultsfromtheneighboringbreedingpairappearedinthevicinityofthehackbutnoaggressiveinteractionwiththefledglingswereobserved.Insteadthereleasedbirdswerefollowingtheadultsandcopyingtheirflight,improvingtheirskills.However,theywerefollowingtheadultsonlyinthevicinitiesofthehackandalwaysreturningbacktothehackingcliff.Thewildadultvultures,obviouslyattractedbythereleasedjuvenilesandprobablythedecoys,landedtofeedatthevulturerestaurantforthefirsttimeduringthisbreedingseason(inthepreviousmonthsthispairwasprovidedwithsupplementaryfoodveryclosetoitsnestasitispartofasupplementaryfeedingscheme;Dobrevetal.2016).ReginaandLomvisitedthefeedingstationaswellbutdidn’tfeedthatday.Onthenextdaymorefoodwasprovidedanddispersedoverthefeedingsiteandthetwofledglingsvisitedthefeedingstationagainbutthistimetheywereeagerlyfeeding.Inthefollowingdaysbothbirdswereregularlyvisitingthefeedingsiteandwereobviouslyattractedbythevulturedecoysastheywereexploringthemandevenjumpingontheirbacks(Pic.7).Lomdemonstratedstrangeterritorialbehavioratthefeedingsitebychasingawaythewildadultmalewhocametofeedonthesite.Somedayslater,on01/09/2016,Elodie(aged78)leftthehacktoo.Shewasregularlyvisitingthefeedingstationaswell.

Intermsofthepost-fledglingmovements,Reginawasnotflyingfurtherthan1,2kmfromthehackbeforestartingmigration.InthefirstdaysafterthereleaseLomwasexploringtheareaaroundthehackingsitefly-ingasfaras1.5kmfromthehack.Beforestartingmigration,on31/08/2016,04and05/09/2016Lommadeexploratoryflightsrespectivelyat7,13and9kmfromthehack.Elodiespentonemonthnearthehackflyingnotfurtherthan500mfromthereleasesiteandregularlyvisitingthefeedingstation.

Picture 6. FirstflightofLomfromthehackingsite. Picture 7. Lom and Regina together with the decoys at thefeedingstation

Migration

Regina

On02/09/2016Regina(aged94days)starteditssouthmigrationjust7daysafterherfirstflightfromthehack.Foronlyadaysheflew270kmoverEasternBalkanMountainandEasternRhodopestoreachGreeceandroostednorthofDadiaNationalPark.OnherwayReginapassedoverareaswithvulturesupplementaryfeedingstationsbothinBulgariaandGreecebutdidnotstoptofeed.TwodayslaterReginacrossedDar-danellesandcontinueditsmigrationsouthbyfollowingtheAegeancoast.On7/09/2016shereachedthewesterncoastofAntalyaBasinnearAdrasanwhichwasacriticalpointinhertravel.ShespentthenightontheAdrasanPeninsulaandinthenextmorningReginachosetocrosstheseainsteadtocontinuealongthecoast.However,ifshehadchosentocontinuealongthecoastshewouldhavetoflynorthtogetaroundthe


Peninsulaandthencontinueitssouthmigration.InthatcaseAdrasanPeninsulaservedasanecologicaltrapfortheyoungEgyptianvultureandshecouldn’tfindtherightroute,finallychoosingtoflyoverthesea.ThatdayReginaflewover270kmfor9-10hoursovertheseaandfinallyreachedthewesterncoastofCyprus.Inthemorningof09/09/2016shecontinuedhermigrationsouthenteringagainintotheseathroughAkrotiriPeninsulaonCyprusat10:00-thedistancetothenearestcoastwas240km.For6hourssheflewover190kmandat16:00some50kmfromtheLebanesecoast,itseemsanortheasternwindpushedherawayfromthecoast.Shecontinuedtoflyovertheseasomemore130kminsouthwesterndirectionandobviouslyveryexhausteddrownedintotheseaat20:00,just28kmfromthecoastofTelAviv.Duringher,unfortunatelyunsuccessful,migrationReginaflewover1,500kmfor8days,withaveragespeedca.200kmperday.Over500kmsheflewoverthesea,wherefinallydied(Map1).

map 1. Migrationmapofthecaptive-bredEgyptianVultureRegina.

Lom

Lomstarteditsmigrationon06/09/2016(aged93days)just11daysafterhisfirstflightfromthehack.Thefirstdayheflew115kmbeforesettlingdowntoroostonacliffinEasternBalkanMountain.Interestingly,LomfollowedhissisterReginaalmostexactlyinherfootsteps,afewdayslater.Lomalsopassedoverpotentialstopoversitessuchasthevulturesupplementaryfeedingstations inEasternBalkanMountain, inEasternRhodopesinBulgariaandDadiaNationalParkinGreecebutdidn’tstoptofeedandroost.UnlikeRegina,hehadcrossedtheMarmaraSeathroughtheMarmaraislands–andnotthroughtheDardanelles,andmigratedthroughWesternAnatoliaratherthanfollowingthecoast.On11/09/2016hereachedthemountainousareasouthofAntalyaneartheAdrasanPeninsula.Lominitiallychosetherightwayflyingnorthandtryingtogooverthepeninsulafollowingthelandbutthenstoppedforroosting.Onthenextmorningunfortunately,heflewbacksouthreachingthehornoftheAdrasanPeninsulaandfacingthesea.Heroostedonacliffovertheseaandintheearlymorningon13/09/2016LomenteredintotheseafromthesameplaceasReginadidear-lier,reachingthewesterncoastofCyprus,wherehespentthenight.Thenextdayhecontinuedtoflysouthoverthesea,almostreachingtheIsraelicoast(some40kmaway),butthenveeredsouthwestandcontinuedtofly150kmmoreoverthesea,whereintheeveningdrownedonly35kmawayfromthecoastofEgypt.Dur-inghis,unfortunatelyunsuccessful,migrationLomflewover1,800kmsouthfor9days,withaveragespeedca.200kmperday.Over500kmheflewoverthesea,wherefinallydied(Map2).


map 2. Migrationmapofthecaptive-bredEgyptianVultureLom

Elodie

Elodiewastheyoungestandthelasttostartitssouthmigration.On26/09/2016Elodie(aged103days)start-edhermigrationflyingonly90kmsouthwestandroostingintheBalkanMountains.Onthenextdayshecon-tinuedherjourneysouthwestandreachedtheAegeanSeanearKomotiniwhereshespentthenight.OnthenextmorninginsteadoffollowingtheseacoasttotheeastElodiedecidedtoflyovertheseareachingAthosonChalkidikiPeninsula.On29/09/2016shecontinuedflyingsouthovertheseaandtheGreekislandsandfi-nallyreachedPeloponnese.At08:00inthemorningof04/10/2016ElodieflewovertheislandofKythiraanditwasthelastlandtoseefollowedby500kmstripofopensea.Shecoveredthatdistanceinonly10hourstoreachtheLybiancoastat20:00intheeveningandturningherselfintoonlythesecondtaggedEgyptianVul-turesmigratingfromtheBalkanswhichhavesuccessfullycrossedtheMediterraneanSea.Theyoungvulturecontinuedflyingsouthwestanother3,000kmtoreachitswinteringgroundsinNigeron18/10/2016.DuringhersouthmigrationElodieflewover4,400kmfor23days,withaveragespeedca.160kmperday(Map3).


map 3. MigrationmapofElodie,whosuccessfullycrossed500kmofopenseaflyingfromGreecetoLibya

Post-migration fate

Afterreachingthewinteringgrounds(18/10/2016)Elodiespentthenext11monthsroamingoveravastareaaroundtheborderbetweenNigeria(Kano)andNiger(Maradi)(Map4).Thebirdsettledmainlyintheareasreachoflivestockandwateravailable(Pic.8),roostingmainlyontress,butwithoutevidenceofsignificantcongregationsofotherconspecifics.

map 4. Elodie’swinteringareainNigerandNigeria


Picture 8. WaterpoolnearKano,Nigeria(left)regularlyvisitedbyElodieinspring2017togetherwithanotherEgyp-tianvulture,andthetree(right)werethebirdoftenperched.

On13/09/2017ElodiestoppedtransmittingfromaplacenearthevillageAboussainsouthernNiger.UndertheguidanceofSCF,ateamfromtheManagementunitoftheBiosphereReserveofGadabejivisitedthelastcoordinatesofElodietomakeinvestigationofherfate.ThemissionbeganwiththesearchforinformationaboutthevillageofGuidanDanJimoandtheplacefromwhichthelastsignalwastransmitted.TheteamvisitedthevillageofAboussa,located60kmbybirdflighteastofGadabedjiintheCommuneofTarka(De-partmentofBelbedji),notfarawayfromthevillageofGuidanDanJimo.Onceattheplacethegroundteamwiththehelpofthevillagechiefsearchedtheareatofindremainsfromthevultureorthetransmitteritself.Theyfoundtwolocalpeoplewhohelpedthemtofindthetransmitterandthering,becausetheywereawareofthecaseandknewthemenwhokilledElodie.Accordingtotheinvestigationheldthebirdwasseenforthefirsttimeon10/09/2017ataround14:30UTC,inthecamp,feedingonadeadcowcarcass.Twotothreedayslater,thechildrenwereworriedbythisstrangebirdandthisiswhatpromptedtwomen,onefromthevillageofAboussaandtheotherfromRuwanAggouwatokillthevultureonThursday14/09/2017around16hinthecamp.Panickedafterdiscoveringtheequipmentofthebird,theyescapedbygrantingpartofthemeattothechildrenofthecamp(Pic.9).Thetwoaccusedmenarethe60yearsoldYahayaYarofromMayahiandthe61yearsoldIssaAdamoufromHawandawaki.ThelocalvillagersstatedthattheyhaveneverseenEgyptianVulturebefore,onlythe65yearsoldheadofthevillagehasseenthespecieswhenhewasyoung.Duringthismission,alocalcommunityawarenessmeetinghadbeenorganized.ThepurposeofthismeetingwastopresenttheimagesofthevulturesencounteredinNigerandtorecalltheirstatusandtheirprotectionbythelaw.TheinvolvementofEco-guardsinthismissionhelpedforthelocalpopulation’sawarenessabouttheparticipatorymanagementofthenaturalresources(Pic.10).Sincetheidentityofthepoacherswasrevealed,thevillagechiefaskedthemtopresentthemselves.Theywillbeheldaccountableinaccordancewiththelawandthiswillserveasalessontoallthosewhowillattempttoperformsuchactswhichareincontradictionwiththenationalandinternationallegislation.


Picture 9. Remains from Elodie killed for bushmeat inNiger

Picture 10. Raising awareness among the local people in thevillagewhereElodiewaskilled.

cOnclusIve nOtes

1� ThethreereleasedyoungEgyptianVulturesthroughthemethodofhackingadaptedwell tothe localconditionsandfledgedatsimilarageastheirwildconspecifics.

2� Thefledglingswereregularlyvisitingthefeedingstationandutilizingtheprovidedfood.Thepresenceofvulturedecoysmighthaveplayedimportantroleinattractingthefledglingstothefeedingstationandshowingwherethesafefoodis.Theavailabilityofqualityfoodinsatisfyingquantityatthefeedingstationisimportanttoattractandholdthereleasedvulturesinthevicinityofthereleasesite.

3� Noaggressiveinteractionswereobservedbetweenthelocalbreedingpairandthereleasedbirds,insteadtheywerefollowingtheadultbirdsandcopyingtheirflightmovementsandbehavior.ThepresenceofconspecificsintheareaofreleasemightplayanimportantroleintheadaptationofthereleasebirdsasthesociallearningplayanimportantroleintheEgyptianVulture’secology.However,thereleasesitewas4kmawayfromthewildpair’snestattheedgeoftheirterritory.Morestudiesandfieldobservationsareneededtobetterunderstandthisbehaviorandthepossibleinteractionbetweenthewildterritorialbirdsandthereleasedvultures.

4� ReginaandLomstartedtheirmigrationearlierthenthebirdsfromthewildpopulation.ThewildfledglingsandadultsontheBalkansstart theirmigrationmainlyduring thesecond– thirdweekofSeptember.TheabsenceofmoreexperiencedEgyptianVulturestofollowduringthisearlymigrationperiodmightexplainthewrongmigrationroutechosenbyReginaandLomandtheirconsequentdeath.However,bothvulturesfollowedalmostexactlythesamerouteandotherfactorsmightbeunderlyingfortheobservedbehavior. More indepth studies areneededon thismatter.Different release techniqueshave tobetestedinfutureandtheirsuccesstobeadditionallyevaluated.

5� TheverylongdistancestravelledbythethreevulturesovertheseaandthesuccessfulcrossingofElodiaof500kmofopenseashowsthatthereleasedbirdswereingoodbodyconditionduringthemigration.Howeverotherfactorssuchaswindspeedanddirectionhavesignificantimpactonthesuccessfulseacrossing.ReginaandLomwereflyingalongsideandclosetothelandbutdidn’treachit.Thereasonsforthisunusualbehaviorremainunknown.

6. Sofar,thereisevidenceforEgyptianVulturefortheBalkansshotforbelievedbaseduseinAfrica(Kretetal.2017),butthisisthefirstevidencedcaseoftaggedindividualshotforbushmeat.RaisingawarenessontheEgyptianVulture’sstatusandimportanceisneededamongthelocalcommunitiesinthewinteringgrounds� Poaching is one of the most important threats for the species in the wintering grounds and especiallyinNigerasprovenbytheElodie’scase.


referenCes

Botha,A.J.,Andevski,J.,Bowden,C.G.R.,Gudka,M.,Safford,R.J.,Tavares,J.andWilliams,N.P.2017.Multi-speciesActionPlantoConserveAfrican-EurasianVultures.CMSRaptorsMOUTechnicalPublicationNo.5.CMSTechnicalSeriesNo.xx.CoordinatingUnitoftheCMSRaptorsMOU,AbuDhabi,UnitedArabEmirates.

Ceccolini,G.&Cenerini,A.2005.TechniquesofreleaseforEgyptianvulturesinItaly.In:BeardedVultureAn-nualReport.F.C.B.V.,121-1242005.

Dobrev,V.,Kret,E.,Skartsi,T.,Saravia,V.,Bounas,A.,Oppel,S.&Nikolov,S.C.2016.Individualsupplemen-taryfeedingoftheEgyptianvulture(Neophronpercnopterus)inBulgariaandGreece(2012-2015).TechnicalreportunderactionC4oftheLIFE+project“TheReturnoftheNeophron”(LIFE10NAT/BG/000152).BSPB,Sofia.12p

Kurtev,M.,Angelov, I.&Yankov,P.2008.ActionplanfortheEgyptianVultureinBulgaria.BSPB,Sofia.(InBulgarian)

Nikolov,S.C.,Barov,B.,Bowden,C.&Williams,N.P.(Eds.)2016.FlywayActionPlanfortheConservationoftheBalkanandCentralAsianPopulationsoftheEgyptianVultureNeophronpercnopterus(EVFAP).BSPBConservationSeriesNo.32,Sofia,CMSRaptorsMoUTechnicalPublicationNo.4,AbuDhabi.124p.

Oppel,S.,Dobrev,V.,Arkumarev,V.,Saravia,V.,Bounas,A.,Kret,E.,Velevski,M.,Stoychev,S.&Nikolov,S.C.2015.Highjuvenilemortalityduringmigrationinadecliningpopulationofalong-distancemigratoryraptor.Ibis,157(3):545-557.

Saravia,V.,Kret,E.,Dobrev,V.&NikolovS.C.2016.AssessmentofmortalitycausesfortheEgyptianVulture(Neophronpercnopterus)inBulgariaandGreece(1997-2015).FactsheetunderactionA1oftheLIFE+pro-ject“TheReturnoftheNeophron”(LIFE10NAT/BG/000152).HOS,Athens.9p.

Velevski,M.,Grubač,B.&Tomovic,L.2014.PopulationViabilityAnalysesoftheEgyptianVultureNeophronpercnopterusinMacedoniaandImplicationsforItsConservation.ActaZoologicaBulgarica,66(1):43-58.

Velevski,M.,Nikolov,S.C.,Hallmann,B.,Dobrev,V.,Sidiropoulos,L.,Saravia,V.,Tsiakiris,R.,Arkumarev,V.,Galanaki,A.,Kominos,T.,Stara,K.,Kret,E.,Grubač,B.,Lisičanec,E.,Kastritis,T.,Vavylis,D.,Topi,M.,Hoxha,B.&Oppel,S.2015.PopulationdeclineandrangecontractionoftheEgyptianVultureNeophronpercnopterusontheBalkanPeninsulaBirdConservationInternational,25(4):440-450.

Velevski,M.,Tavares,J.,Zink,R.,Hatzofe,O.&Frey,H.2016.Suggestedprotocolfortheexperimentalreleaseofcaptive-bredEgyptianVulturesinItalyandBalkanPeninsula.VCFTechnicalNote.


annexes

Annex I. Overviewperindividuals

Lom Regina Elodie

Parameters

Generalcharacteris5cs:

Sex Male Female Female

Origin Turkish Turkish Pyrenean

Hatching date 06.06.2016 01.06.2016 16.06.2016

First flight (age) 26.08.2016 (82 days) 26.08.2016 (87 days) 01.09.2016 (78 days)

Migra5on:

Start (age) 06.09.2016 (93 days) 02.09.2016 (94 days) 26.09.2016 (103 days)

Average speed 200 km/day 200 km/day 160 km/day

Total distance covered (duraLon)

1,800 km (9 days) 1,500 km (8 days) 4,400 km (23 days)

Distance flown over the sea

500 km 500 km 500 km

Mortality:

Date / period 13.09.2016 (migraLon) 09.09.2016 (migraLon) 13.09.2017 (wintering)

Cause Drowning into the sea Drowning into the sea Shot (for bush meat)

LocaLon Mediterranean Sea (35 km from the coast of Egypt)

Mediterranean Sea (28 km from the coast of Tel Aviv)

South Niger (near the village Aboussa)

W WW

W 1

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