Protection Of Birds Research Articles

The International Convention for the Protection of Birds (1902): A Missed Opportunity for Wildlife Conservation?

The draft International Convention for the Protection of Birds Useful to Agriculture has been analysed. This text was drafted at an international conference organised by France in 1895, with the participation and agreement of politicians, technicians and prestigious ornithologists and naturalists. The exact content of the draft has been confirmed from different documentary sources, and it has been found that it differed, in part, from the convention to which a dozen European States definitively subscribed in 1902. Also, some of the changes made to the draft were very significant, since they harmed many species and significantly lowered the conservationist pretensions of the convention. The present account suggests that such changes might have been due to pressures exerted in the interests of certain countries, which demurred from the broad consensus reached at the 1895 conference. It is emphasized here that the draft agreed that year was fully consistent with the knowledge and views of much of the scientific community of the time, following the path indicated by some of the bird protection laws that were adopted during the 19th century by several European nations.

The Appropriate Impact Assessment and Authorisation Requirements of Plans and Projects likely to have significant impacts on Natura 2000 sites

In 1979 the EU enacted the Birds Protection Directive, and in 1992 a sister directive, Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora (the “Habitats Directive”). In addition, a clear commitment to halting the loss of biodiversity in the EU has been made in the Commission’s Communication on Halting the Loss of Biodiversity by 2010 - and Beyond. The aim of this article is to shed a light on the procedural requirements laid down under Article 6(3) and (4) of the Habitats Directive, a key provision for implementing the EU’s system of protecting and preserving biological diversity in the Member States. The contribution examines the assessment procedure and the authorisation scheme. It also takes a look at the possibility for the Member States to authorise a plan or a project adversely affecting the integrity of a protected site. Furthermore, the article examines the relationship between the different impact studies provided for under EU environmental law.

The Importance of Being Listed: Birds, Lists and the History of Conservation

The importance of lists in the history of conservation is discussed with particular reference to some episodes in the international history of bird protection. Historiographical research has shown the hybrid nature of conservation that results from the blending of scientific expertise, political action and legal measures. In such a contested arena, lists have often provided a simple but powerful textual device for translating scientific information and conservation concerns into effective legal measures. Naturalists, trained in the natural history tradition of lists and catalogues, have played a key role in this respect. The usefulness of lists, derived from their simplicity and clarity, is not, however, without shortcomings.

Fatal epicarditis in a hen harrier (Circus cyaneus) a red-listed bird of high conservation concern in Britain associated with Cyathostoma species and Escherichia coli infection

Three species of the syngamid nematode Cyathostoma have been reported in raptors ( Cyathostoma ( Hovorkonema ) variegatum , Cyathostoma americanum , Cyathostoma lari ). These nematodes typically parasitise the...

Differentiating between stopover and staging sites: functions of the southern and northern Yellow Sea for long‐distance migratory shorebirds

Evidence‐based protection of migratory birds at flyway levels requires a solid understanding of their use of ‘stopping sites’ during migration. To characterize the site use of northward‐migration great knots Calidris tenuirostris in China, we compared length of stay and fuel deposition during northward migration at areas in the south and the north of the Yellow Sea, a region critical for migrating shorebirds. Radio‐tracking showed that at the southern site great knots stayed for only short periods (2.3 ± 1.9 d, n = 40), and bird captures showed that they did not increase their mean body mass while there. In the north birds stayed for 1 month (31.0 ± 13.6 d, n = 22) and almost doubled their mean body mass. Fuel consumption models suggest that great knots departing from the northern Yellow Sea should be able to fly nonstop to the breeding grounds, whereas those from the south would require a refueling stop further north. These results indicate that the study sites in the northern and southern Yellow Sea serve different roles: the southern site acts as a temporary stopover area that enables birds with low fuel stores to make it to main staging areas further north, while the northern site serves as the critical staging site where birds refuel for the next leg of their migration. The rapid turnover rate in the southern Yellow Sea indicates that many more birds use that area than are indicated by peak counts. Differential use of the southern and northern sites indicates that both play crucial roles in the ability of great knots to migrate successfully.

Spatial Distribution Expending of National Protected Birds after 10 Years Environmental Recovery in Beijing

Environmental protection programs exert strong effects on vegetation and plant conservation; however, few researchers have dealt with the impacts of environmental protection programs on wildlife recovery. We compared the spatial changes in avian species distributions caused by these environmental restoration programs for 63 national key protected bird species by overlaying GIS layers to examine the effects of environmental protection on bird diversity since 2000 in Beijing, China. Generally, these species congregated in areas away from human disturbance and around wetlands, city parks, and woodlands. Class One protected birds appeared to be expanding their ranges although they were sparsely distributed. Two Class One species appeared new to the area after 2000. Several Class Two protected species were also enlarging their ranges and one Class Two species appeared new to the area. The results reveal that the ranges of bird species as well as species diversity of the national key protected birds are increasing as wetlands recover and vegetation conditions improve in the vicinity of Beijing.

Laboratory corrosion tests on overhead line conductors with bird protection systems

SUMMARY Overhead lines in areas with sensitive populations of large birds raise demands for protection against bird electrocution (mortal current transfer through the bird bodies), particularly for threatened species like the eagle owl. For the decision making of what protection measures to apply, it is important to assess both their environmental benefits and the measures of technical consequences. One of the popular retrofit protection methods is insulation of the aluminium conductors at pin insulated medium voltage overhead line poles. In the present work, we have performed accelerated corrosion tests on aluminium conductors using four different bird protection systems available on the market. The tests were performed in laboratory environment for marine corrosivity indices 4 and 8, and simulated time periods up to 24 years. The results show that the systems influence the degradation of the aluminium conductors, leading to life-time expectancy reductions between 12 and 22% for the investigated corrosivity indices. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Status of marsh birds in the wetlands of the Colorado River delta, México

Populations of secretive marsh birds (Rallidae and Ardeidae) have declined in North America in the last decades. Despite drastic habitat changes, the Colorado River delta supports four species of protected marsh birds: California Black Rail, Virginia Rail, Least Bittern and Yuma Clapper Rail. Our goal was to assess the status (2010–2011) and detect population changes (1999–2011) of marsh birds in the Colorado River delta. This effort was focused on the Cienega de Santa Clara and the recent disturbance events that occurred in this wetland (changes in inflows, dredging and wildfires), but included other areas of the delta as well. The Cienega provides critical habitat for the four species, with estimated abundance of 405 California Black Rails, 7152 Virginia Rails, 8652 Least Bitterns and 8642 Yuma Clapper Rails. Populations of these species have remained stable since 1999, with no significant trend, although with some fluctuations in some years. Other wetlands in the delta also provide important habitat, especially El Doctor Wetlands for California Black Rails and Virginia Rails, the Hardy and Colorado rivers for Yuma Clapper Rails and Least Bitterns, and Laguna del Indio for Yuma Clapper Rails. The detections of marsh birds in 2011 were amongst the highest since the monitoring program began in 1999. This was probably linked to the disturbance regime that was recreated with a series of events in the Cienega, including the dredging of sediment, variations of inflows, and an extensive wildfire. Wetlands in the Colorado River delta support the majority of breeding Yuma clapper rails and important populations of other marsh birds. As these are shared species by México and the U.S., the conservation and restoration of the delta should be a shared responsibility.

Migrating Towards an Incidental Take Permit Program: Overhauling the Migratory Bird Treaty Act to Comport with Modern Industrial Operations

In 1918, Congress passed the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) to curb mass avian extermination caused by hunting and poaching. Despite Congress’s initial concern with these activities, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) expanded the scope of MBTA enforcement to include bird deaths caused by industrial activities. This created a glaring split of authority among U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeals, with one side applying strict liability under the MBTA for all deaths of protected birds caused by industrial activities and the other side refusing to apply the MBTA to indirect and unintentional bird deaths. This article argues that the best solution would be for Congress or the FWS to establish an incidental take permit program that would exempt industrial operators from prosecution for certain indirect, unintentional bird deaths caused by industrial activities. Such a program would provide the best balance between the MBTA’s conservation principles and the reality of vital and growing industrial operations. A permit program would provide industrial operators with certainty concerning liability and project planning, and provide the FWS with a tool to fund and ensure conservation of migratory birds, while still allowing the FWS to prosecute those failing to obtain a permit or violating the Act in another way.

The Comparative Analysis of Pressures and Threats to The Natura 2000 Sites for Wild Birds Protection - Case Studies in Wetlands in Romania and Bulgaria

ABSTRACT The Natura 2000 concept and wetlands protection are relatively new for Romania and Bulgaria, because they are former communist countries and, after the 1990s, had too little value placed on nature conservation in favour of infrastructure development and agriculture. The development of the European ecological network Natura 2000 on these territories has come as an obligation for accession of these countries to The European Union on 01.01.2007. During the period 2006-2009 I made an analysis for the management of protected areas along the Danube Green Corridor, between Romania and Bulgaria, especially for wetlands, similar to the results of the WWF Germany project “Lower Danube - Green Corridor (LDGC): Freshwater protected area management and freshwater restoration in Bulgaria, Romania and trans-boundary conservation along the Lower Danube”. To have a complete view of the situation of the protected areas management between Romania and Bulgaria, along the Lower Danube Green Corridor, and the perspectives for the next years, I carried out some evaluation for more than 20 Natura 2000 sites, which are alike in many ways, such as: the object of protection (Sites of Community Importance, SCI, under the Habitats Directive; Special Protection Areas for birds, SPAs, under the Birds Directive; natural protected areas of national importance for these two countries, or other natural and semi natural areas with the potential to be protected), human activities, pressures and threats, and other aspects. Later, I used these results to make a comparative analysis of the Cernica area (Ilfov County, Romania), to add another argument to include it in the Natura 2000 Network from Romania, as ROSPA0122 Cernica Lake and Forest. This analysis showed that Cernica faces approximately the same pressures and threats as other protected areas and has almost the same efficiency in management planning as the highest assessed Natura 2000 SPAs, respectively Iezer-Călăraşi in Romania and Srebarna of Bulgaria, which is an argument to establish this area as a Natura 2000 site.

Harvesting Seabirds and their Eggs on the Irish Sea Islands (Part 5: Rathlin, A Twentieth-Century Survival)

Of all the ‘Irish Sea’ islands, Rathlin retained a significant tradition of community-based seabird fowling into recent times. Formal harvesting of the birds probably ended shortly after the introduction of later nineteenth-century bird protection legislation, but cliff-climbing for eggs continued into the mid-twentieth century. It was brought to a formal end by further legislation in 1954, but in practice by a cliff death in 1945 and much reduced post-war demand. A mix of oral reminiscence and written sources provides details of species targeted, bird cliffs, cliff-climbing and harvesting techniques, cliff rights and self-regulation, uses, fowling families, social organization, climbers’ clothing, and ‘curio’ egg-collecting. It provides a rare understanding of how cliff-climbing and seabird fowling were likely practised elsewhere around the Irish Sea, and complements evidence from Ireland’s Atlanticcoast Blasket Islands. Since Rathlin appears to have been abandoned in the late sixteenth century (albeit soon repopulated), this asks questions as to the origins of its fowling traditions and their role in helping chart intercultural influences, matters that form the core of the final parts of this study (Folk Life, forthcoming).

Classification Method Research on Management Type of Wetlands Nature Reserve Based on Water Bird Protection

Classification Method Research on Management Type of Wetlands Nature Reserve Based on Water Bird Protection

Assessing vulnerability of marine bird populations to offshore wind farms

Offshore wind farms may affect bird populations through collision mortality and displacement. Given the pressures to develop offshore wind farms, there is an urgent need to assess population-level impacts on protected marine birds. Here we refine an approach to assess aspects of their ecology that influence population vulnerability to wind farm impacts, also taking into account the conservation importance of each species. Flight height appears to be a key factor influencing collision mortality risk but improved data on flight heights of marine birds are needed. Collision index calculations identify populations of gulls, white-tailed eagles, northern gannets and skuas as of particularly high concern in Scottish waters. Displacement index calculations identify populations of divers and common scoters as most vulnerable to population-level impacts of displacement, but these are likely to be less evident than impacts of collision mortality. The collision and displacement indices developed here for Scottish marine bird populations could be applied to populations elsewhere, and this approach will help in identifying likely impacts of future offshore wind farms on marine birds and prioritising monitoring programmes, at least until data on macro-avoidance rates become available.

Geographical Multianalysis and Function Division of Wetland

Wetlands are considered as one of the most productive ecosystems on earth, and more vulnerable and sensitive compared to other ecosystems. With the development of the society, wetlands are suffering serious degradation and loss due to intense anthropogenic disturbance, such as wetland pollution, land use, etc. As one of the effective management measurements, regionalization of wetland function is helpful to have resources in a sustainable development pattern. This paper takes Widgeon Lake, in Beijing, as study region, combining with multi-source remote sensing data, wetland investigation, and the field and meteorological observation data, to analyzes natural features of wetland surrounding, rare feature of wetland type, rare feature of wetland species and the impact of human activities on the wetland. On the other hand, the species and species distribution, soil type and soil moisture, vegetation type and vegetation growing feature, soil erosion and land cover are analyzed, in order to implement regionalization of wetland. Consequently, based on the principles of landscape ecology and wetland science, the function division is conducted, and the leading function area is determined based on GIS technique and overlay analyses, correlation analyses, and leading index methods. As to the management district, according to the hydrological situation and the DEM, the supplement region and protection region are marked out firstly. Then the center, buffer and experiment regions are ascertained in the protection region. As to the leading function area, the protection region is divided into bird protection, vegetation protection, water environment, material supplement, recreation and service regions.

Open-source mapping and services for Web-based land-cover validation

Monitoring land-cover changes on sites of conservation importance allows environmental problems to be detected, solutions to be developed and the effectiveness of actions to be assessed. However, the remoteness of many sites or a lack of resources means these data are frequently not available. Remote sensing may provide a solution, but large-scale mapping and change detection may not be appropriate, necessitating site-level assessments. These need to be easy to undertake, rapid and cheap. We present an example of a Web-based solution based on free and open-source software and standards (including PostGIS, OpenLayers, Web Map Services, Web Feature Services and GeoServer) to support assessments of land-cover change (and validation of global land-cover maps). Authorised users are provided with means to assess land-cover visually and may optionally provide uncertainty information at various levels: from a general rating of their confidence in an assessment to a quantification of the proportions of land-cover types within a reference area. Versions of this tool have been developed for the TREES-3 initiative (Simonetti et al., 2011). This monitors tropical land-cover change through ground-truthing at latitude/longitude degree confluence points, and for monitoring of change within and around Important Bird Areas (IBAs) by Birdlife International and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB). In this paper we present results from the second of these applications. We also present further details on the potential use of the land-cover change assessment tool on sites of recognised conservation importance, in combination with NDVI and other time series data from the eStation (a system for receiving, processing and disseminating environmental data). We show how the tool can be used to increase the usability of Earth observation data by local stakeholders and experts, and assist in evaluating the impact of protection regimes on land-cover change.

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

IMMUNOGENIC RESPONSE WITH EFFICACY OF CERTAIN GUMBORO VACCINES IN BROILER

The research work was carried out to determine the immunogenic response with efficacy of six commercial Gumboro, vaccines (Nobilis® Gumboro D78 and Nobilis® Gumboro 228E, Intervet, The Netherlands; Bur-706®, Merial, France; TAD Gumboro vac® and TAD Gumboro vac forte®, Lohmann Animal Health, Germany; BursaplexTM, Merial Select, Inc. Gainesville, USA) under experimental condition in broiler chickens during the period from November 2002 to May 2003. The chickens of two groups were vaccinated with Nobilis® Gumboro D78 and Nobilis® Gumboro 228E at 14 days of age with a booster dose at 21 days of age and were challenged at 40 days of age with vvIBDV. TAD Gumboro vac® and TAD Gumboro vac forte® were inoculated into the two groups of chickens at 14 and 28 days of age and the chickens were challenged at 35 days of age with vvIBDV. Bur-706® vaccine was given to the chickens of another group at one-day-old and 14 days of age and the chickens were challenged at 28 days of age. One group of chickens was vaccinated with Bursaplex™ vaccine at 1-day-old with no booster dose and was challenged at 21 days of age. The percentage of protection in birds receiving Nobilis® Gumboro D78 and Nobilis® Gumboro 228E vaccines by intraocular route was 92.30 and 96.29 respectively, whereas the percentages of protection in birds receiving TAD Gumboro vac®, TAD Gumboro, vac forte® and Bur-706® vaccines were 95.65, 100 and 95.83 respectively. BursaplxTM provided 100% protection against challenge with vvIBDV. Chickens vaccinated with Nobilis® Gumboro D78, Nobilis® Gumboro 228E, TAD Gumboro vac®, and Bur-706®, showed significant (p < 0.05, p < 0.01) decrease in ELISA antibody titre up to the day of challenge infection. BursaplexTM vaccinated group also showed significant decrease in ELISA antibody titre by 7 days (p < 0.05) and by 14 and 21 days (p < 0.01) after primary vaccination. In case of TAD Gumboro vac forte®, 7 days (839 ± 219.34) and 14 days (258 ± 44.80) after primary vaccination, the ELISA antibody titre significantly (p < 0.01) decreased but 7 days after booster vaccination, the ELISA antibody titre significantly (p < 0.01) increased (1299 ± 37.51). All the control sera revealed significant (p < 0.01) decrease of ELISA antibody titre up to day of challenge infection. There was an insignificant increase in ELISA antibody titre 7 days after booster vaccination in case of unvaccinated control groups for TAD Gumboro vac® and TAD Gumboro vac forte® only. Nobilis® Gumboro D78, TAD Gumboro vac® and Bur-706® vaccinated groups revealed significant (p < 0.01) increase of ELISA antibody titre 7 days post-challenge while Nobilis® Gumboro 228E and BursaplexTM vaccinated groups showed significant (p < 0.05) increase of antibody titre after 7 days of challenge. Insignificant increase of antibody titre was recorded in TAD Gumboro vac forte® vaccinated group. It may be concluded that TAD Gumboro vac forte® (intermediate plus) and BursaplexTM (Merial Select, Inc. Gainesville, USA) can be used to immunize the broiler birds sufficiently against IBD. However, it is necessary to estimate the optimum vaccination timing, i.e., to determine when maternal antibodies in chicks will decline to levels that the vaccines can overcome.

Protection of Rare Species Birds in The Zoo from Infection with Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI)

Protection of Rare Species Birds in The Zoo from Infection with Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI)

Vaccination with CpG-Adjuvanted Avian Influenza Virosomes Promotes Antiviral Immune Responses and Reduces Virus Shedding in Chickens

The use of virosomes as a vaccine platform has proven successful against several viruses. Here we examined the protective efficacy of a virosome-based vaccine consisting of avian influenza virus (AIV) A/Duck/Czech/56/H4N6 in chickens against a homologous AIV challenge. Virosomes adjuvanted with CpG-ODN or recombinant chicken interferon (IFN)-γ significantly reduced virus shedding after virus challenge. Furthermore, immunization with virosomes adjuvanted with CpG-ODN increased hemagglutination inhibition (HI) and virus-specific neutralizing serum antibodies, as well as virus-specific serum IgG and mucosal IgA responses. We also found a significant increase in the expression of type I and II interferon genes in the protected birds following virus challenge. In summary, this study demonstrated the ability of virosomes adjuvanted with CpG-ODN to reduce AIV shedding, and elicit virus-specific protective antibody responses in vaccinated birds.

Corona characteristics of distribution line in contact with conductive material and life estimation of conductor insulation

AbstractIn relation to accidents due to bird nests in contact with overhead distribution lines, the authors investigated the life estimation of conductor insulation. Accidents are often caused by crows or magpies. There is a region in which magpies have been designated a protected bird in Japan. In that region, the nests cannot be easily removed in the breeding season. Recently, metal wires have been used as nest material. When this conductive material is in contact with a distribution line and arm, a corona discharge will occur. The conductor insulation of the distribution line suffers deterioration and there is a possibility of causing an accident. In this study, an acceleration test was performed to investigate the time from nest building to an accident in the distribution line. The acceleration factor based on the charge amount of the corona and the influence of the applied voltage on corona characteristics was discussed. The life of the conductor insulation was discussed in terms of the V–t characteristics and the acceleration factor. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 179(4): 25–32, 2012; Published online in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com). DOI 10.1002/eej.21260