Spring 2017 has arrived, so it´s time to re-start the Newsletters. And there´s quite a good reason to do so. The day before yesterday, on March 22, the first wild bird within this season arrived at the breeding site Burghausen in Bavaria.
A successful, but in some ways also a difficult year lies behind us. I´d like to thank everyone for their interest and dedication for the Northern Bald Ibis and the LIFE+ project!
Due to our joint efforts, there´s Reason for Hope, according to the motto of our LIFE+ project. Hope is of great value in these days, and a good and positive motive for the new year 2017! Stay with us!
Best wishes
Johannes Fritz
From November 30 to December 01, a LIFE+ veterinary meeting, organized by the LIFE+ Northern Bald Ibis team and hosted by Zoo Vienna, took place. It was a quite mixed group: 25 people from 4 nations participated. Out of that, 12 were veterinaries, 12 were scientists (and partly also veterinaries) and nine were conservationists (and partly also scientists).
On November 15 2016, the female Northern Bald Ibis LUNA was found in the region of Verona, near Costermano, with heavy injuries caused by gun pellets. It is the fifth case of illegal hunting on this critically endangered species within the migration season 2016.
Within 40 days, three critically endangered Northern Bald Ibises were shot in different Italian regions during their migrating journey. This is one sixth of the birds that were present in Italy at the time.
KATO was shot already on September 1 2016, the first day of the hunting season in the Tuscany. One month later, on October 8 2016, the male bird TARA was shot near Thiene, province of Vicenza.
On September 1 2016, the first day of the hunting season in the Tuscany, the subadult Northern Bald Ibis KATO was shot near Punta Ala, province of Grosseto. Two days after the accident, a member of the LIFE+ reintroduction team discovered the body of KATO at a meadow. It was handed over to Renato Ceccherelli from the Veterinary Wildlife Management, CRUMA, for examination. He stated with accuracy and without possibility of contradiction that KATO was shot.
Almost 4 years ago, on October 13, 2012, the female Northern Bald Ibis “GOJA” and her offspring “JEDI” were shot by an Italian bird hunter in the province Livorno, just 80 km from the wintering site. The hunter had the licence to hunt on woodpigeon. On September 13, 2016, the final hearing in the Livorno tribunal ended with the judgment. The hunter has been recognized guilty, condemned and his hunting licence has been withdrawn.
Almost 4 years ago, on October 13 2012, the female Northern Bald Ibis “GOJA” was on the way to the wintering area in the southern Tuscany, followed by her offspring “JEDI”. In the province Livorno, just 80 km apart from the wintering site, both birds were shot by a hunter which had the licence to hunt on woodpigeons. Now, on September 13 2016, the final hearing in this case takes place in Livorno. The moral and material damage is assessed at € 20,000.
On August 19, the human-led migration started. We have chosen a new passage across the main Alpine range, following the preferred route of our own migratory wild birds.
On August 19 we tackled the first stage of the human-led migration 2016. At 10:30, we took off from Camp Brunn in Seekirchen with two microlights and 25 birds – one bird wasn´t able to fly with us due to an injury.
Yesterday we had our last training flight, a wonderful tour along 60 km in the Salzkammergut (Austria) above Fuschlsee, Wolfgangsee, Mondsee, Irrsee and Wallersee, with a flight altitude of up to 1,300 m msl. All 26 birds followed us; this year´s birds form a very uniform and extremely motivated group.
