Мониторинг гнездового участка змееяда

Abstract

In the breeding seasons of 2013–2023, monitoring of the permanent breeding territory of a pair of Short-Toed Eagles (Circaetus gallicus) was conducted in the southern shore of Lake Balkhash, in the transition landscape of wetland to desert biome, in a wooded area dominated by Turanga Poplar (Populus diversifolia). It was found that, at least during the 2017, 2021, and 2022 breeding seasons, nearly fully feathered nestlings were eaten by an Asiatic Wildcat (Felis lybica ornata) shortly before they fledged from their nests. All nests observed during the monitoring periods were located in the uppermost center of a poplar tree crown. Starting in 2021, a DJI Mavic 2 PRO quadrocopter was used for monitoring. Using a Bushnell Nature View 12MP camera trap in 2017, an Asiatic wildcat was found to have repeatedly visited the nest at the top of a tall poplar tree during the breeding season, but did not eat neither the egg nor the nestling at various stages of its development. A pair of Short-Toed Eagles from this nest was tolerant of a pair of Shikras, or little banded Goshawkes (Accipiter badius), nesting 5 m away in a neighboring poplar. Adult Shikras, on the contrary, showed aggressive behavior toward Short-Toed Eagles approaching their nest, especially after their nestlings had hatched. Notably, in 2022 and 2023 the Short-Toed Eagles reused the same nest. Moreover, despite a negative breeding outcome in 2022, the pair successfully raised a nestling in 2023 until it fledged from the nest. The nestling, sometimes accompanied by one of the parents, was still in this poplar grove in late August and early September of 2023, often resting in a large poplar 70 m from the nest. The nest itself also continued to be used as a roost and foraging area, where prey, mainly Long-Eared Hedgehogs (Hemiechinus auritus), were brought and eaten.