looduskalender.ee

 

The bird migration has been intense during the last weeks and all who have been outdoors have seen different kinds of migrants. The departure of some (cranes for instance) is clearly noticeable, others simply disappear at some moment.

 

We have renewed the Bird migration map within the ESTLAT Eagles project and added the Latvian and Estonian ospreys and Estonian white-tailed eagles on it. Sadly, one of the latter lost its life through an illegal hunter’s bullet. The paths of cranes, black storks, greater spotted eagles and lesser spotted eagles can be followed. While black storks Raivo and Priidu, greater spotted eagles Tõnn and Sander, and ospreys Erika and Eriks are in their wintering areas already, the migration of others still goes on. The migration path of two ospreys – Ilmar and Eriks – has been somewhat surprising, going to the western coast of Africa. So was also the return journey of our special osprey Piret in Africa.

 

 

Piret left her migration stopover place in the Nile delta on September 6th and flew almost to the Sudan border,  then turned back towards north on September 9th in the morning. She arrived back to the Nile delta in the morning of September 16th . The way back along the Nile seemed to be quite difficult (adverse wind?). Interesting – what made the eagle fly back? Anyway, on October 8th Piret again and confidently took a direction southwards, possible that her aim is Lake Victoria. Latvian Ilze has just reached Italy, she has chosen a quite risky route but we hope for the best. Estonian Ilmar is beginning to reach the Congo River.

Interestingly cranes Kadaja and Hauka have come together in Belarus; we follow the cranes with the support of the University of Life Sciences scientists. The transmitters of the spotted eagles and most of the work with the information from the transmitters is covered by the Environmental Board.

The young white-tailed eagles move around quite freely, particularly Sillu, who reached the Nemuna River delta. Meelis is looking around in Russia.

 

There are plans in Latvia to catch two more white-tailed eagles but it is not easy.

 

See the migration map:

http://birdmap.5dvision.ee/ ; in English here.