Black Vulture Aegypius Monachus Research Articles

Diet Composition of Four Vulture Species in Azerbaijan

We studied the diet of four avian scavenger species, the Griffon Vulture Gyps fulvus, Black Vulture Aegypius monachus, Egyptian Vulture Neophron percnopterus and Bearded Vulture Gypaetus barbatus in Azerbaijan, in the South Caucasus region, from 2008–2012. During these years, a total of 1861 remains were collected between May and July at nests of each of the four vulture species. The collected food remains belonged to 45 different animal species, including at least 24 species of wild mammals and eight species of domestic mammals. Diet composition of Griffon and Black Vultures differed greatly between years, consisting mainly of Domestic Sheep Ovis aries in 2008 and 2009, carnivores such as Grey Wolf Canis lupus, Golden Jackal Canis aureus and Red Fox Vulpes vulpes in 2010, and Domestic Horses Equus ferus caballus in 2011 and 2012. The diet of Egyptian Vultures was less variable across years, but generally consisted of a larger variety of wild animals, including Red Fox, Brown Hare Lepus europaeus caucasic...

Redke vrste ptic v Sloveniji v letu 2014 – Poročilo Nacionalne komisije za redkosti /Rare birds in Slovenia in 2014 – Slovenian Rarities Committee's Report

This report by the Slovenian Rarities Committee presents records of rare bird species in Slovenia in 2014, with some addenda for previous years. The numbers in brackets refer to the number of records (first number) and individuals (second number) recorded between 1 Jan 1950 and 31 Dec 2013. Since 1 Jan 2013, submission to the Committee has been required for 37 additional species, 17 of which are regional rarities. Records of these species are not numbered, since records from previous years were not collected by the Committee. One new species was added to category C5: Sacred Ibis Threskiornis aethiopicus. One species, Spotted Dove Streptopelia chinensis, was added to category E. Breeding was confirmed for Muscovy Duck Cairina moschata and Northern Bobwhite Colinus virginianus; the two species were thus transferred to subcategory E*. Other notable observations were the third and fourth records of Black Vulture Aegypius monachus, fourth and fifth records of Gannet Morus bassanus, fourth record of Pomarine Skua Stercorarius pomarinus and fourth record of Richard’s Pipit Anthus richardi. The flocks of four Gannets and 23 Flamingos Phoenicopterus roseus have been the largest recorded in Slovenia to date. The list of birds recorded in Slovenia (as of 31 Dec 2014) contains 385 species (369 in category A, 7 in category B, 9 exclusively in category C; 4 species are both in categories A and C). Category D contains 6 species, while category E contains 34, two of which are classified into subcategory E*. These two categories are not part of the list.

Occurrence of the griffon vulture Gyps fulvus and the black vulture Aegypius monachus in central europe in the 21st century

Abstract The paper presents an overview of the occurrence of two vulture species: the griffon vulture (Gyps fulvus) and the black vulture (Aegypius monachus) in Central Europe in the 21 st century. The number of records of griffon vultures has been increasing in recent years. After a first peak in the year 2007, the number of records has been steadily increasing again since 201 0. In some years (especially 2007 and 201 2) the occurrences showed the characteristics of an influx, similar to the development in Western and Western-Central Europe. In addition, this period coincides with changes in European sanitary legislation affecting the availability of livestock carcasses. Most of the records come from the summer months. It is likely that the increased occurrence is a result of increasing populations in South-Eastern but also in South-Western Europe, as well as being influenced by food shortages in south-western populations (mainly Spain). Both of these regions can be considered as likely origins of the birds observed in Eastern-Central Europe. The number of records of black vultures do not show a similar pattern, although there are indications that birds from the reintroduced population in central France also turn up as far afield as Eastern Europe.

Modelling nesting site suitability in a population of reintroduced Eurasian black vultures Aegypius monachus in the Grands Causses, France

AbstractDefining habitat selection features and predicting the distribution of species are important for conservation management, and habitat suitability models can provide the statistical framework linking environmental variables to occurrence locations. However, the reliability of such models is restricted for datasets that have limited presence data, which is problematic when population size is low and population dynamics are transient, such as in reintroductions. We characterized and projected nest-site suitability for a black vulture Aegypius monachus population reintroduced in the Grands Causses, France. We performed temporal validations with subsample datasets based on chronological establishment, to assess whether first nests are able to predict subsequent nests. We compared these results to a spatial validation to ensure robustness. Predictions were reliable even with only 10 nest locations. The black vultures reintroduced in the Grands Causses selected pine trees and steep slopes, similar to natural populations elsewhere in Europe. Although our projections were made from only a small number of founders, they are conservative and indicate that a large area in this region is available for nesting and thus availability of breeding habitat is not currently a limiting factor for the species. Our findings will aid the modelling of habitat suitability for further reintroductions. We propose conservation management strategies for this region that integrate socio-economic constraints with the prediction of sites suitable for nesting. Where habitat is the most suitable for black vultures, logging and human activities need to be reduced during the critical breeding stages.

An overview of monitoring for raptors in Bulgaria

Abstract Since 1990, nature conservation NGOs are the main players in the running of nation-wide research and monitoring schemes for raptors in Bulgaria. Among them, the Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds (BSPB) and Green Balkans are most active, covering the most threatened diurnal raptors in the country. The key species covered by comprehensive monitoring schemes are the Imperial Eagle Aquila heliaca, White-tailed Eagle Haliaeetus albicilla, Egyptian Vulture Neophron percnopterus, Griffon Vulture Gyps fulvus, Black Vulture Aegypius monachus, Saker Falcon Falco cherrug and Red-footed Falcon F. vespertinus. Information on their distribution, numbers, breeding success, productivity, diet, movements etc. is gathered on annual basis. The Buzzard Buteo buteo and Kestrel F. tinnunculus are also regularly monitored at the national level by the Common Bird Monitoring scheme. Distribution of all raptor species has been studied for the purpose of the Atlas of Breeding Birds in Bulgaria. The contemporary satellite telemetry methods revealed important aspects of movements and threats to eagles and vultures from Bulgaria within the country and abroad. Main threats for the raptors in Bulgaria are related to habitat loss, unnatural mortality and disturbance. The main gaps in raptor monitoring in Bulgaria are related to the lack of coverage of most of the diurnal species and owls. There is a strong national and international cooperation in conjunction with the work concerning Imperial Eagle, Egyptian and Griffon Vultures. However, further enhancement of cooperation on other raptor species and issues such as lobbying for implementation of raptor-friendly agricultural practices and enhancement of various economic sectors are needed

Population Estimates for the Diverse Raptor Assemblage of Dadia National Park, Greece

Population estimates for the diverse raptor assemblage of Dadia National Park, Greece.Dadia National Park, which is situated in north-eastern Greece, close to the border with Bulgaria and Turkey, is characterised by one of the most diverse arrays of breeding raptorial species in Europe. The first raptor survey was undertaken in the 1970s, but until 1999 most surveys were circumstantial and nonsystematic. Considering some of these species are globally endangered and included in Annex 1 of the Birds Directive, and that raptors in general are considered key indicators of biodiversity and ecosystem health, a systematic raptor monitoring programme was established by WWF Greece in 2000. This paper presents the results of this programme including the population status, trends and breeding densities of raptors from 2001 to 2005. Some 18–19 species bred in the area regularly, at densities ranging from one pair per 100 km2 (e.g. long-legged buzzard Buteo rufïnus and peregrine falcon Falco peregrinus) to 30 pairs per 100 km2 (common buzzard Buteo buteo). The total number of raptor territories was stable with an average of 321 ± 15.5 territories (77 territories/100 km2) with no overall trend and little fluctuation. Although the population size has increased for several species since the mid 1990s, data from the first surveys in the 1970s suggest that some species are still recovering from the decline suffered in the 1980s. The populations of six species have remained stable since the 1970s, whilst five species, including the Egyptian vulture Neophron percnopterus, have shown a gradual decline. The black vulture Aegypius monachus was the only species with a confirmed increase, a further three species showing a probable increase. The long-term trend for four species, including the common buzzard, is unknown due to insufficient data from the 1970s.

First record of Eurasian Black Vulture Aegypius monachus for Senegal

First record of Eurasian Black Vulture Aegypius monachus for Senegal

Population trends of Black VultureAegypius monachusin Dadia Forest, north-eastern Greece following the establishment of a feeding station

SummaryDadia Forest in north-eastern Greece is well known for its diversity of breeding birds of prey. In 1980, the area was declared a wildlife reserve. One of the most endangered species at that time was the Black VultureAegypius monachus. To help the population of Black Vultures a feeding station was established in 1987. A monitoring programme from 1984 until present indicates that the operation of the feeding station has coincided with an increase in the numbers of Black Vultures wintering in Dadia by nearly threefold, an increase in the number of breeding pairs from 10 to 21, and an increase in breeding success from 40% to a peak of 95%. A slight faltering in the continued rise in the numbers of Black Vultures in Dadia is attributed to a poisoning event in 1995.

A redescription of Aegypoecus brevicollis (Burmeister, 1838) (Ischnocera: Philopteridae)

After studying some material belonging to genus Aegypoecus Clay & Meinertzhagen, 1939 captured on the head and neck of a European black vulture Aegypius monachus, the authors have identified these specimens as Aegypoecus brevicollis (Burmeister, 1838). Morphobiometric data on adults (both males and females) are given, and the designation of a neotype for this species is proposed.