Search Results (4)

For the past 20 years, reintroduction efforts have been underway to re-establish a migratory population of Northern Bald Ibises (Geronticus eremita) in Central Europe, which now consists of more than 250 birds. They breed both north and south of the Alps and migrate to a common wintering ground in Tuscany. Recently, the start of autumn migration has been increasingly delayed, which correlates with extended warm periods in autumn. Later in the year, however, the birds no longer find sufficient thermals to cross the Alps and remain in the northern Alpine foothills. In order to save their lives, we had to capture the affected birds before the onset of winter, which is not a sustainable solution. A new approach to solving the problem is the establishment of a second migration route to a wintering area in Andalusia, Spain, connecting our population with a sedentary population there. The new migration route bypasses mountain barriers and also allows the birds to reach the wintering grounds later in the year. The modelling of a pan-European population will provide the birds with high ecological and spatial flexibility. Our project exemplifies the consequences of advancing global warming for animal populations and the associated challenges for conservation projects. Full article

The Northern Bald Ibis Geronticus eremita is an endangered species, and recently it was reintroduced in Europe by the Waldrappteam. The reintroduction program has been strongly threatened by several sudden deaths, mainly in Italy. The present study used a forensic approach to analyze all of the 27 Northern Bald Ibises found dead in Italy between 2016 and 2022, which were suspected to have been victims of poaching, and it followed the veterinary forensic guidelines. Human-related causes accounted for 60% of the deaths, including illegal hunting (30%), blunt force trauma (26%), and electrocution (4%). Natural causes, starvation (15%), predation (11%) and disease (7%), accounted for 33% of the deaths. 7% of the causes of deaths remained undetermined. This study uses a forensic approach to analyze, for the first time, the main causes of death in Geronticus eremita and highlights the relevance of detecting illegal actions related to endangered species and stopping the phenomenon of poaching. Full article

We trace the history of the endangered Northern Bald Ibis through different epochs to the present. A particular focus is placed on its life in and disappearance from ancient Egypt, where the bird attained great cultural and religious significance, and on the modern endeavour to re-wild the species. Due to the characteristic appearance, behaviour and habitat of the species as well as its need for open foraging areas, a close mutualistic relationship between humans and the birds was formed in ancient Egypt, as in other cultures. A clear benefit for the Northern Bald Ibis was the availability of feeding habitats, which were cleared by humans for farming or grazing. The benefit to people was rather cultural because the bird attracted religious veneration or symbolic meanings from ancient Egypt to medieval Europe. The proximity to humans, however, carried a high risk as well. We discuss various types of impact (including human impacts as well as climate change) as triggers for the extinction of the species. The evidence for a triple disappearance of the Northern Bald Ibis (around 2000 BCE, around 1600 CE and in modern time) represents a unique basis for studying both the bird’s habitat preferences and its vulnerability. This is because different, mainly anthropogenic, causes stood behind these three historical disappearances, although the disappearances in all three epochs occurred during a period of climate change. Full article

The Northern Bald Ibis (Geronticus eremita, NBI) is an endangered migratory species, which went extinct in Europe in the 17th century. Currently, a translocation project in the frame of the European LIFE program is carried out, to reintroduce a migratory population with breeding colonies in the northern and southern Alpine foothills and a common wintering area in southern Tuscany. The population meanwhile consists of about 200 individuals, with about 90% of them carrying a GPS device on their back. We used biologging data from 2021 to model the habitat suitability for the species in the northern Alpine foothills. To set up a species distribution model, indices describing environmental conditions were calculated from satellite images of Landsat-8, and in addition to the well-proven use of optical remote sensing data, we also included Sentinel-1 actively sensed observation data, as well as climate and urbanization data. A random forest model was fitted on NBI GPS positions, which we used to identify regions with high predicted foraging suitability within the northern Alpine foothills. The model resulted in 84.5% overall accuracy. Elevation and slope had the highest predictive power, followed by grass cover and VV intensity of Sentinel-1 radar data. The map resulting from the model predicts the highest foraging suitability for valley floors, especially of Inn, Rhine, and Salzach-Valley as well as flatlands, like the Swiss Plateau and the agricultural areas surrounding Lake Constance. Areas with a high suitability index largely overlap with known historic breeding sites. This is particularly noteworthy because the model only refers to foraging habitats without considering the availability of suitable breeding cliffs. Detailed analyses identify the transition zone from extensive grassland management to intensive arable farming as the northern range limit. The modeling outcome allows for defining suitable areas for further translocation and management measures in the frame of the European NBI reintroduction program. Although required in the international IUCN translocation guidelines, the use of models in the context of translocation projects is still not common and in the case of the Northern Bald Ibis not considered in the present Single Species Action Plan of the African-Eurasian Migratory Water bird Agreement. Our species distribution model represents a contemporary snapshot, but sustainability is essential for conservation planning, especially in times of climate change. In this regard, a further model could be optimized by investigating sustainable land use, temporal dynamics, and climate change scenarios. Full article