Following Karls' Families

[fussel]

Hi

that's still part of my New Year's greetings: This forum has enriched my life enormously ...

To all: have a nice day

[Francesca_V]

Hello everybody!

WABA

▶︎ TRACKER MAP
WABA 1.1.-2.1.2023
From 11:09 until 04:09 resp. 11:09 UTC

Battery: 100%
Distance: 183 km

https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid= ... sp=sharing


Little Waba spent the night near the 5th cataract near Mberika on the other side of knee of the Nile. The last position today was at 11:09 UTC near Atbara.





Waba's night place

[Francesca_V]

5th cataract


https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/p/AF1 ... zJ-Jc=h720

[Hulbi Lorm]

Hi Anne, fussel, Francesca and all others !

A new year has begun for us all and for our black storks, and Waba has chosen to get back to her former area. If only we were able to read our storks' minds, I'd really like to know what made her / him fly back to Merowe and return again. Maybe Waba had forgotten something at Merowe?

But one thing seems clear when looking at the map: Near the end of this data session, Waba had a good meal. And that's what counts most!

[Francesca_V]

Hi Hulbi,
Maybe Waba is a bit of a cherry picker and prefers to fly to the best places - good may not be good enough.

Actually, of course we don't know which is better here or there - but practicing flying strengthens the muscles.

[Anne7]

.
Good evening, everyone!

Waba's last known location (near the city of Atbara) was transmitted by SMS (GSM session).
The information as seen in OrniTrack:
Please click here: https://up.picr.de/44966943sz.png

S/he was at that time (probably) hunting in the Atbarah River, just northeast of the little village of Umm'Ajajah. (Umm'Ajajah is a hamlet in Sudan. Umm'Ajajah is situated nearby to the locality El Maqran and the hamlet Ash Shiqlah.)
May s/he have been fishing successfully!

Usually, I find so much flying back and forth over long distances not very reassuring. It may indicate trouble finding enough food, or perhaps too many disturbances. It may also indicate 'restlessness'. The felt urge to move on maybe.
Unfortunately, we don't know whether Waba finds little food, just enough food or a lot of food... Alas, we cannot assess Waba's body condition, nor the availability of food. Let's see what little Waba undertakes next...

Waba's last known location:


Herewith the recent Sentinel map, to see the current water level in the Atbarah River.
Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI) on 2022-12-28


A photo of the Atbarah river in Waba's surroundings

© Patrick Ourdi; https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/p/AF1 ... qvqj=h1440

Fussel, Francesca and Hulbi

[Anne7]

.
I just made a quick addition of how many kilometres Waba flew since s/he left the Atbarah river on 28.12 (in the morning) until s/he was back in the same area on 02.01 (at noon).
(The last, still unrecorded stretch, was added by approximation)
It is just under 1000 km in 5.5 days. On average, that makes about 175-180 km per day. That's a lot (for a non-travelling BS)

[Bea]

☼ ☼

Hello everyone

UDU

We have got some data from Udu

I hope, I got them all ....

29./30./31.12.2022 and 01./02.01.2023

https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid= ... sp=sharing


Udu is at the western coast of Turkey, South of the Dardanelles and Canakkale




A small data cluster at Kücükmenderes Stream

[Bea]

☼ ☼

Hello everybody!

WABA

▶︎ TRACKER MAP
WABA 02.01.-03.01.2023
From 02.01._04:09 until 03.01._11:09

https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid= ... sp=sharing


Battery: 100%
Distance: 207 km


Waba is still in Sudan, mainly at the river Nile


Waba moves more South along the Nile


Exploring more of the Nile, as well as the area towards river Atbara, all in all s/he flew again a pretty long distance (207 km)

[Francesca_V]

Thank you, Bea, especially for the good news about Udu.

[Anne7]

.
Hello everyone

Thanks, Bea!

Although it is puzzling to see that Udu has not been flying southeast (but approximately 155 km west!), it is really good to receive an update showing 6 location points.
Could it be that Udu's solar panels are finally being washed clean?
Hopefully s/he is OK. One would have expected Udu to be beyond the Gulf of Iskenderun by now.
Please see the map:
https://up.picr.de/44976073es.png

Little Udu is between the villages Yeniköy and Kalafat, near the Aegean coast.


Kalafat is a village in the Çanakkale district of Çanakkale Province in Turkey.
Yeniköy is a village in the Ezine district of Çanakkale Province in Turkey.
Wikipedia

Çanakkale, ancient Dardanellia, is a city and seaport in Turkey in Çanakkale province on the southern shore of the Dardanelles at their narrowest point. The population of the city is 195,439 (2021 estimate).
Çanakkale is the nearest major urban centre to the ancient city of Troy, which (together with the ancient region of the Troad) is also located inside Çanakkale Province. The wooden horse from the 2004 movie Troy is exhibited on the Çanakkale waterfront. …
Çanakkale has a Mediterranean climate with hot, dry summers and cool, wet winters.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Çanakkale

Although the nights are chilly, the weather is currently still quite pleasant in Kalafat.
That's reassuring.

https://www.meteoblue.com/en/weather/we ... key_310824

The last 14 days temperatures measured by Udu's leg-mounted transmitter range between 16°C during the day and 2°C at night

[Anne7]

.
Udu has been near this place. Cezayirli Hasan Paşa Köşkü (Algerian Hasan Pasha Mansion)

© Yiğit Mızrak, Jul 2019; https://goo.gl/maps/tzm1hFwt4PXWT3Ck7

A view of "Udu's" river west of Kalafat

© UMUT OKDAŞ; https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/p/AF1 ... 3Hd3=h1440

Another view of the Küçükmenderes stream (maybe near Kalafat)
https://up.picr.de/44973519zt.png
© Egemen ÇAKIR, Mar 2019, https://goo.gl/maps/3hifNmAFjyEJY7EJ8

Yeniköy Çamlık Kafe
https://up.picr.de/44973520lp.png
© Street view, Halil Ersin Avcı, Dec 2019; https://goo.gl/maps/P6xmZ5ZpPvkGEv146

Video:
"Çanakkale Yeniköy Sahili" (Yenikoy Beach)
In the background a view of Udu's wide area

© Gezgin Muhabir Türker Yeşil

[Anne7]

January 4th

Hello all!

WABA

▶︎ TRACKER MAP
WABA 03/04.01.2023
From 03.01 at 11:09 UTC until 04.01 at 11:09 UTC
https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid= ... sp=sharing

Distance: 47.1 km
Battery: 100%

Little Waba is still in Atbara.




S/he spent the night in the Atbarah River.
All morning s/he has been looking for food in (and close to) the river.
At 13:09:48 (UTC+2) - last known location - Waba is heading north, speed 44 km/h

[Anne7]

.

Today's hunting grounds:

By Google Maps


By Sentinel 02.01.2023 - Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI) (water body mapping)


By Sentinel 02.01.2023 - Normalized Difference Moisture Index (NDMI) (moisture)



Tomorrow I will not be home for almost the entire day.
The tracker map(s) will be made in the late afternoon/early evening.

Have a nice day!

[Hulbi Lorm]

Hi everyone ,

Udu and Waba sure are giving us a lot to wonder about. Not really sure what Udu's plan is, but he made it over the last winter, so I trust his instincts. As regards Waba, I can't really imagine his / her long flight distances are due to lack of food - the banks of the Nile look so stork-friendly... But who knows...

[Anne7]

.
Hi Hulbi

On 26.12, Urmas emailed me the following concerning Udu:

"... I see two rows in data table, on the 22nd and 26th. Last one contains coordinates in NW Turkey, at night in tree-line between fields. Seems normal, but the place itself is too much in north. 8 and 3 degrees C only. We can't exclude Udu's longer stopover in some rice fields between northern Italy and Turkey. It could be that Udu [now] started a longer flight, since also battery of transmitter charged a bit.
As its leg mount transmitter can be in different positions, the accelerometer shows not much. But it moves…
In Italy, Po river was very low, probably there was shortage of food and Udu had to recover body condition before he started to travel. Unfortunately, the transmitter does not send any data we can use for estimation of body condition... Weather is cool and slightly rainy in Turkey. Udu needs to hurry, maybe. ..."

If - as I too suspect - Udu is indeed not in top condition, (maybe) because of the severe drought in northern Italy (and thus due to a prolonged food shortage), then it was probably a wise decision to fly to the Aegean coast. The climate there is milder, Mediterranean. The island of Lesbos is nearby, and it has been documented to be home to some wintering Black Storks.
But Udu may continue to amaze us. Udu is Udu, and has always been an out-of-the-box-bird, rather unpredictable. I really hope s/he will make it.

As for Waba, I'm not sure either. Such long distances are very unusual if a bird finds plenty of food at a stopover site. Normally, big wide rivers are not really their preferred fishing areas either. As a “rule”, BS like undisturbed places, marshes, swamps, brooks, pools and ditches in remote, natural areas. Shallow and slow-flowing water. But they have to find those places first, of course.
In this respect, Karl II, for instance, has a very good/typical wintering place! Just like Udu, the previous winter.

As always, we can only wait and see. And keep our fingers crossed.

Good night!

[Anne7]

January 5th

Good evening!

WABA

▶︎ TRACKER MAP
WABA 04/05.01.2023
From 04.01 at 11:09 UTC until 05.01 at 11:09 UTC
https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid= ... sp=sharing

Distance: 32.7 km
Battery: 100%

Waba is still near Atbara



Again, Waba spent a lot of time in the Atbarah river and its floodplains.


Photo
Salah Qadi Mosque and Complex

© hussein ahmed; https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/p/AF1 ... ZrX_=h1440

Some more pics tomorrow.

[Anne7]

UDU

▶︎ TRACKER MAP
UDU 02/03/04.01.2023

https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid= ... sp=sharing

Distance: 4.37 km (incomplete data)
Battery: 1% (at the last shown location)

UDU is still in the same area.



S/he is close to what looks like a fishpond, south of Kumkale, and north of Tevfikiye.


Kumkale is a village in Çanakkale Province, Turkey. …
The major economic activity of the settlement is agriculture. Tomatoes are the most important product. Cotton and sunflowers are also produced.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kumkale,_Çanakkale



Next data session expected: 2023-01-07 at 13:40:03 (UTC+2)



Edit: hello Hulbi

[Hulbi Lorm]

Hi Anne and all others ,

good to see Waba taking it slower for a second day in a row. And what a pleasant surprise to get somewhat regular news from Udu at the moment! His battery even is at one percent.

Have a good evening!

[Jshallri]

Maybe some of the baked-on, caked-on guano coating Udu’s leg-mounted GPS unit has finally washed off?