The final stage
Newsletter 26/08/2018
Only one flight stage separates the team of this year’s human-led migration from the wintering area Laguna di Orbetello.
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Crossing the Alps in three stages
Newsletter 22/08/2018
Yesterday we reached the airfield of Thiene on the northern edge of the Padan Plain. The Alps were crossed in only three flight stages with a total distance of 408 km. Now there are around 500 km left to reach the wintering area of the Northern Bald Ibises.
First migration stage accomplished
Newsletter 18/08/2018
On August 15 started the human-led migration towards Southern Tuscany! After nearly three months of training in Hödingen near Überlingen at Lake Constance, all 31 hand-raised Northern Bald Ibises got past all difficulties and follow the two aircrafts easily.
Start of the human-led migration
Newsletter 14/08/2018
All birds from the colonies in Kuchl and Burghausen already left their breeding areas two weeks ago, forming one big group of Northern Bald Ibises that will fly towards south independently.
Ready to migrate
Newsletter 08/08/2018
Yesterday we successfully completed one of the last training flights with the Northern Bald Ibises in Überlingen at Lake Constance. The 31 birds fly reliably in the company of the two aircrafts.
Electrocution and safety measures
Newsletter 03/08/2018
On July 21, we lost four Northern Bald Ibises due to electrocution on an unsecured pylon of a medium-voltage power line in Hochburg-Ach in Upper Austria.
Cooperating with space engineers
Newsletter 01/08/2018
The flight training with 31 Northern Bald Ibises in Überlingen / Hödingen is progressing well. The birds now fly very reliably with the paraplanes.
Promising start of the breeding season 2018
Newsletter 07/05/2018
Since April 23rd, 33 Norther Bald Ibis chicks are hand-raised at Zoo Vienna by their two human foster parents Corinna Esterer and Anne-Gabriela Schmalstieg. Visitors of Zoo Vienna are able to watch the foster mothers at work; additionally, project team members are providing information about the European LIFE+ reintroduction project.
Research on formation flight
Newsletter 16/02/2018
Waldrappteam has been awarded a three-year research project by the Austrian Science Fund (FWF). In this project we want to use the unique possibilities of human-led migrations with the NBI to explore in depth the fascinating phenomenon of the formation flight in migratory birds.
NBI population model
Newsletter 15/02/2018
After a long winter break, it is high time to start the new season 2018 with a newsletter. The results of a recent modelling offer a good opportunity. Based on the data of our wild living NBI population, the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research in Berlin performed matrix models, which calculated the future population development of our NBIs over a period of 15 years.
Poaching incident in Prato
Newsletter 10/10/2017
Santora is a one year old male Northern Bald Ibis. In 2016, he was hand-raised and released in Tuscany. This year, Santora started to migrate between the wintering site in Tuscany and the breeding site in Salzburg. At the end of September, Santora was on his way back towards south. On September 27th at 09:00 am, he departed from his night roost near Prato, heading to a site 2 km away were he used to look for food since his arrival a few days ago.
Start of autumn migration 2018
Newsletter 27/09/2017
The autumn migration of our wild Northern Bald Ibises has begun with a true highlight: This year, the female “Camillo” from the generation 2015 returned from the wintering area to her breeding area in Burghausen (Bavaria) for the first time. She hasn´t bred yet, as she´s still too young. But on September 22nd, she started to fly back towards south, and six (!) juvenile Northern Bald Ibises of the current breeding season followed her.
