Spring-time love life of a Black Stork family in web-camera

This year Black Stork is in closer focus, as Estonian Fund for Nature, supported also by Estonian Nature Tours (also supporting the Young Conservationist's Award Foundation  and the Fying Squirrel project), has launched a series of actions to draw attention to this rare bird's status and life conditions. While lots of volunteers are involved in practical  outdoor works to clean the feeding areas of the species, mainly small forest rivers and ditches, the rest of the public audience can feel involved watching the bird via internet. 

The direct stream of the webcamera is just beyond a click:

Black Stork / Source: et.wikipedia.org

Recently these big, but elegant love-birds were devoted to this years' offspring.
The worst impact to the life conditions of the Black Stork is caused by the policy of clearing old growth forest in Estonia and elsewhere. As mentioned above the small shallow-watered rivulets – feeding ground of the species – have overgrown and this process is rapidly accelerating. 

Volunteers are active in the second set of problems, as this is more easily achievable goal. Most evidently the lack of food and suitable feeding sites is counteracting the birds' efforts to grow up their chicks. This is particularly important for the young birds to be fit before leaving for wintering sites in Africa. So clearing works will be carried out in autumn, when the birds have finished their breeding season.

As for forestry practices and policies most of Estonian conservational NGO-s are making efforts via Estonian Council of Environmental NGO's (EKO) to make the statutory law of Estonian forestry more sustainable.
The Black Stork is a 1st category protected species in Estonia, also listed in Estonia's Red Data Book as a vulnerable species.

Migration Map News – Summary of Autumn Migration

It is always fascinating to see what the birds we are following on Migration Map are doing and we started the autumn following 23 birds 7 of which were juveniles. The largest proportion of juveniles was amongst Common Cranes but we know well that due to natural selection a large proportion of juveniles do not reach their wintering grounds and only two cranes, Ahja2 and Juula2 have made it. Both of them are wintering in Tunisia, though Ahja2 spent last winter in Turkey. Changes of wintering grounds have also been recorded amongst Finnish Cranes.

One of five Ospreys, Ilze form Latvia, perished in Calabria, southern Italy. She was probably shot and injured and did not recover. Unfortunately the transmitter was not found, though twice our Italian colleagues tried to locate it. A second Latvian Osprey, Eriks, was lost in Gabon in October. We hope he is out of network area and will be visible again when he starts his spring migration. Estonian Ospreys winter in Africa, Ilmar in SW Angola, Piret and Erika in Sudan. Piret was also out of network area for 40 days until she went 200km northwards to winter. Piret made an interesting about turn on her migration when she reached the Sahara and turned suddenly turned back travelling 1200km. At the moment there is no data about what the weather was like at that point there, but something induced such a long extra trip. Her journey back to the Nile Delta seemed to be a struggle against dominant northerly winds.

The Black Storks are wintering in their usual places, Raivo near the fish ponds in the Jordan Valley, Priidu in Sudan and Central African Republic and Pirsu in Chad and Cameroon.

The juvenile White-tailed Eagles, Sillu and Meelis, did not migrate much (we think), but the transmitters on them are not working very well, and we don’t know their most recent movements. The last positions we have from November are that Sillu was in the Kaliningrad region of Russia and Meelis was on the Russian coast of Pskov Lake. We hope to see the birds again when they return in spring.

Among Greater Spotted Eagles probably the most interesting is the juvenile Tore, who we believe to be the brother of Tõnn. We lost him in Switzerland, after he was observed for a long time near Lake Constance by local bird watchers. We suspect the problems with the transmitter maybe shortage of sun light for the solar charger. Tõnn and Iti are wintering in their usual sites. Sander is the first GSE we followed from Estonia and is wintering in Africa. The wintering site of the Osprey Piret is only some 200 km SE of Sander.

Lesser Spotted Eagles Karin and Magnus made typical migrations for their species and arrived in southern Africa. The wintering area is large, including several countries (Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia, South-African Republic). The hybrid Spotted Eagle Luule hit serious problems trying to cross the Ionian Sea from Greece to Sicily in December and sadly may have drowned. 

It is only a couple of weeks before some of these birds may start their spring migration...
Click here to see migration map...

Source:  Estonian Ornithological Society / The Eagle Club

Geese and swans go home! We won't go – a grey hungry wolf is lurking behind the hill...

The autumn is here, full time.

The days are fitful and moody – in one moment there is a shower or even a howling tempest, but in a couple of hours the sun is peeping out of the clouds again. Crisp mornings and bright nights with falling stars, the calls and whirr of wings of migrating birds above my house, the scent of mould - all that make autumn really special – are now here. Just enjoy!

Autumn is uneasy, it's a time full of changes and colours. So has this very autumn plenty of top records and surprises.

In mid-september during one day the bird-watchers of Sõrve bird-station counted almost 200,000 Chaffinches!

In 21 September a new migration top number of the whole Europe was recorded – 193 migrating lesser spotted woodpeckers were counted in 5 hours ! In 25 September a rare in Estonia Firecrest (Regulus ignicapillus) was found in the net together with Goldcrests. This species has been ringed here only twice, while the last time was in 1974 – thirty eight years from now.

Although the majority of the cranes, who had gathered here for a stop-over, were leaving in late september, still 6300 migrating cranes were counted in Kabli in 6 October during one day, which is the top record crane number during the 40 years of the station's activity.

Eriks – the Osprey form Latvia – is crossing the equator, while Priidu – the Black Stork from Estonia – is in hot pursuit.

Click to see Migrationmap...

The masses of Barnacle Geese are just to arrive.

Click to see Barnacle Geese video...

What else?

 Bears in Alutaguse

The bears in Alutaguse have lost their mind – the hurly-burly is available via the internet camera almost the nightly basis. They are roaring around in pairs and with the whole families. It happens that sometimes they are really anxious and show up already in the daylight. In the very best nights one can see from 7 to 9 bears.

Alutaguse forest camera direct stream...

White-tailed Eagles enjoy themselves close to the hide, even in groups. 

Unexpectedly early for them. The same location is regularly visited by a wolf. Day or night – it doesn't matter. Unbelievably dramatic.

Direct stream moments:

Me – I'm going to see all this with my own eyes. For ten full days. A photographer from Britain will be my company and the rest of the world can see and read about this within some months already :)

Autumn migration started and Eagle Club migration map has upgraded

Since 2005 the Estonian Ornithological Society and the Eagle Club have placed satellite and GPS receivers on birds. Receivers are placed on the birds primarily for the purpose of researching the species and organising protection. All of these birds have also been named.

Osprey, Pandion haliaetus / Urmas Sellis

From mid of July started autumn season on migration map. Migration map has upgraded, though the changes are not well visible - there are added new players, Opreys of ESTLAT project and completely new species - White-tailed Eagle. Probably all birds we can follow this year are by now visible on migration map. You can see four new juvenile Cranes (Ahja3, Juula2, Kadaja ja Hauka), of who at least tree are turned to migrate southwards. From the numbered territories there are juveniles tracked also in past years. For example, Ahja2 got transmitter 2011 and accordingly spent this summer at border area between Belarus and Ukraine. Cranes are tracked by Estonian University of Life Sciences.

White-tailed Eagle Nimeta (No Name, yet) was rehabilitated in Vet Clinicum and realized in Eastern Estonia. He did not move lot during a week, but then started to fly north. He was found in Finnish Gulf and we can assume he returns there. We will see, if he was breeding already somewhere... Nimeta is tracked with support of voluntary donations.

Very interesting is a track of Piret the Osprey. By some reason she returned from Sudan border back to north. Another Osprey of ESTLAT Eagles project Ilze stops for longer time in Hungary, Hortobagy National Park. The male Osprey Eriks stops in Bulgaria, but Estonian Ilmar is still at breeding grounds. Also Lesser Spotted Eagles start to migrate.

Click here to see Migration map

Source: Eagle Club

Titchwell Marsh

The Estonian Nature Tours team also visited the Norfolk area during the British Birdfair 2011 for some birding. Our main destination was Titchwell Marshes where we encountered nice flocks of waders - including Black-tailed Godwits, Dunlins, Avocets, Ruffs and many other wetland birds. Even a rare vagrant - a Buff-breasted Sandpiper was seen at Titchwell that day. It was an interesting visit not only for birds but also for the great opportunity to see successful nature conservation efforts in action. We were also delighted to see the very modern hides at this wetland which allow birdwatchers to get really close to the birds without disturbing them. We also went to Hunstanton to see Fulmars - a bird which is rather common in Norfolk, but not present in Estonia.

View to the Titchwell Marshes
Photo: Tarvo Valker

Titchwell Marsh is an exceptional nature reserve on the north Norfolk coast. It is a part of a network of outstanding wildlife sites across Europe called Natura 2000. A walk from the visitor centre down to the sandy beach takes you past reedbeds and shallow lagoons, which are often full of birds. You can sit on benches or watch from spacious, wheelchair-accessible hides. Read more...

Hiking trail before entering the hide
Photo: Tarvo Valker

RSPB Titcwell Marsh nature reserve is under pressure. The sand dunes along
the beach are being eroded by the sea. The ersosion of the dunes would
ultimately threaten the sea walls that prtect the reserve´s valuable
freswater habitats. These habitats are home to spectacular and rare breeding birds such as bitterns, mars harriers and bearded tits.

Inside view of the birdwatching hide
Photo: Tarvo Valker

In autumn 2009, the RSPB started work on the Titchwell Marsh Coastal Change
Project.

Find out more about the project here...

View to the mudflats from the hide
Photo: Tarvo Valker