Reintroduction and Conservation of Vultures in the Verdon Area
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Reintroduction and conservation of Vultures in the Verdon area 1 Monitoring results 2011 / SH AL MGB - LPO PACA January 2012 Reintroduction and conservation of Vultures in the Verdon area 1. Black Vulture (Aegypius monachus) The reintroduction of the European Black Vulture in the Verdon began in 2005. This program is managed by LPO PACA in cooperation with the Black Vulture Conservation Foundation (BVCF), European zoos, Spanish rehabilitation centres, the associations “Vautours en Baronnies” and “Vautours en Haute- Provence” and “LPO Mission Rapaces”. In 2011, this program benefited from a subsidy from the Region Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur, the Regional Direction of Environment (DREAL PACA) and the Department of the Alpes de Haute Provence. This operation is part of the new National Action Plan in favour of the Black Vulture for 2011-2016 coordinated by DREAL Midi-Pyrénées. The global report of this plan for the 3 French concerned sites (Grands Causses, Baronnies and Verdon) was sent to the member of the pilot committee. 1.1. Breeding monitoring On January 24th 2011, Marc Pastouret noticed two Black vultures together in a dale. The first one was perched on a pine and had no ring, and the second one was carrying branches on many occasions on a Scots Pine. This active bird was Jean (ring DOS). At 5:26 pm, we saw a mating confirming that Jean is definitely a male. The female is an exogenous bird (named Exo_1), who has been observed on the site since 27th April. Fortunately, she carried an easily distinguishable mark on her left wing: she has a naturally white feather in her coverts that could be seen in flight or when she is perched. These behaviours of a nesting couple continued until 27th February. The couple then disappeared from the area for no known reason. They reappeared together on March 9th on the feeding station in the Baronnies (information: C Tessier & J Traversier) where they nested in April, but it was a failure. Jean and Exo_1 were back in Rougon by the beginning of June and were often seen together during quarries in Rougon. The monitoring of this first pair, from the 24th of January to the 6th of March, represents 15 visits and 56 hours of surveillance. The pair Jean et Exo1 (A Lacoste) 1.2. Releases results Black Vultures released in the Verdon Exogenous Black Vultures observed from from released captured dead during the unmarked Total Baronnies Causses year 2004 1 1 2005 2 1 2 1 3 2006 2 1* 3 3 6 2007 3* 5 2 1 2 / 3 10 / 11 2008 5 1* 9 4 2 / 3 15 / 16 2009 4 11 4 2 17 2010 1 1 9 2 7 2 20 2011 2 7 3 4 3 17 2004-2011 18 1 3 18 13 11 10 / 12 45 / 47 * Wupper was released in 2006, then captured, released in 2007 and died in January 2008 1 Monitoring results 2011 / SH AL MGB - LPO PACA January 2012 Reintroduction and conservation of Vultures in the Verdon area Recuperation of news birds On March 31st 2011, 4 news birds native to Spain (Wildlife Fauna Recovery Centre “Los Hornos”, Estremadura, Spain) were brought by Juan Sanchez, director of the BVCF, and were put in our aviaries. They were immatures: one male was born in 2009, and another male and two females were born in 2010. They will be released in autumn 2012. They joined “Nestor”, a young bird from the Causses and another injured bird who cannot be released. This one was transferred on the 15th of May to Mallorca, at the centre of the BVCF to become part of a pool of captive nesting birds. Release in the aviary of the 4 Spanish Black Vultures (A Lacoste). At the beginning of September, the LPO PACA collected a fledgling offered by the Burgers’ Zoo of Arnhem (Netherlands). It was put in the aviary in Rougon. This bird was born on the 29th of May 2011. Blood sample revealed that it was a female; she was named “Burgers Zoo”. Preparing “Burgers Zoo” at Arnhem and releasing in the aviary at Rougon (A Lacoste). September 5th, a second chick offered by “le Grand Parc du Puy du Fou” (France) was brought by Christophe Gaborit to Rougon and joined “Burgers Zoo” in the aviary. “Rougon” is a male born on the 7th of June 2011. Releasing of Rougon in the aviary (A Lacoste) 2 Monitoring results 2011 / SH AL MGB - LPO PACA January 2012 Reintroduction and conservation of Vultures in the Verdon area 1.3. Individual monitoring 1.3.1. Black Vultures released in the Verdon Release of November 15th 2011 BURGERS ZOO and ROUGON were released on the 15th of November. The aviary was opened early in the afternoon and a quarry was organized at the same time next to the cage. About 150 Griffon Vultures and 5 Black Vultures were present. Only BURGERS ZOO came out for half an hour to eat with the others at the feeding station and then went back in. They finally left the cages on the next day. Burgers Zoo the 15th of November during the quarry (A Lacoste) - BURGERS ZOO. On November 16th, between 12:33pm and 1:15pm, she did 5 short flights around the cages. At 1:58 pm, she managed to gain altitude. She soared into the air and went towards the Grand Canyon. We got a signal with the receiver until 2:35pm. Around 6 o’clock that night, from the “Route des crêtes”, at the edge of the canyon, we had a signal from “le Mourre de Chanier”, the highest point of the zone. Although we were back in the same place at 8 am on the next day, we had no more contact. BURGERS ZOO was seen a week later in Camargue, Arles, Bouches du Rhône. Grégoire Massez saw her at 2.15pm on November 23rd over the Marais du Vigueirat “flying low above the water as if just taking off, then away S-SW direction harassed by Marsh Harriers and crows and last by a female Peregrine Falcon.” Later, Pierre Foulquier saw her again, further South: “Circling rather low in the sky. Flying above the beach and going down to disappear behind a dune (observed from the first-aid post of Piemanson’s beach). No further observation after her disappearance.” Finally, around 3pm, André Blasco saw her for the last time “flying slowly further to the south, scolded by a seagull.” No other observation occurred during the next days. - ROUGON. On November 16th, he rapidly lost altitude and was blocked beneath the cliffs below the aviaries, above the river Verdon during a few days. On Saturday 19th, helped by an eastern wind, he managed to gain altitude and to perch on a crest near “la Palud-sur-Verdon”. The next 3 Monitoring results 2011 / SH AL MGB - LPO PACA January 2012 Reintroduction and conservation of Vultures in the Verdon area day, he got closed to the aviaries and gained altitude, and finally disappeared. Like Burgers Zoo, Rougon reappeared a week later. On Sunday 27th November, Eric Barthélemy saw and photographed him in the Nerte’s dale, East of Marseille, on the verge of a military camp. The next morning, he was sighted twice around Marseille. Around 9:30am, he flew over the semaphore of Callelongue (Frédéric Lussi). Later, Christophe Lauzier, Mathieu Imbert and Patrick Vidal saw ROUGON over the Pomègues’ Island, a small island near the city. Around midday, he went back to the North towards the Estaque. These observations are the most recent. Rougon November 27th in the Nerte’s dale, Marseille (E Barthélemy) and the November 28th above Pomègues’ Island (C Lauzier) Previous releases, from 2005 to 2010 - ARNHEM, first Black Vulture released by hacking in 2005, is still in the area. - ALCYONE, released on December 12nd 2007, is regularly observed on the site. - JEAN was released by hacking on August 2nd 2008. He was present at the beginning of the year, in pair with the female Exo_1, until the 27th of February 2011. They nested in the Baronnies and returned to Verdon from the 3rd of June. Jean lost his bleached feathers. - SIRIUS was observed at Organya in Cataluña on November 8th 2010. He was photographed on the feeding station in Baronnies (Vautours en Baronnies) since 20th to 26th of April 2011.Then, we saw him in Rougon on the 6th and 10th of May. The 9th of May, he was photographed in flight at Tourrettes sur Loup, Alpes Maritimes (T Corveler, K Morell). He was identified thanks to a bleached feather. The 10 th and 11th of September, he was again seen in the Baronnies, and on the 13th in Saint Etienne de Tinée, Alpes Maritimes (J-C Piques) and on the 16th in Rougon. From 30th of September till 9th of November, he alternated Verdon and Baronnies. The last data of the year is the 11th of November. He was photographed at the Montagne de Ceüze, Hautes-Alpes (D Richier). - THÉCLA. She was last observed on the 3rd October 2010 in the North of Denmark. As usual, Thécla surprised us again. She was present on the feeding station in the Baronnies (Drôme) on the 25th of March 2011. Then she disappeared once more. - STÉHÉLINE AND JASON are nestling in the Baronnies’ colony. 1.3.2. Exogenous Black Vultures Ten exogenous Black Vultures visited the Grand Canyon during the year: three birds from the Baronnies (Valouse, Anjou and Condamine), four from the Causses (Malabar, Odysée, Occitan and Oran), the female Exo_1 and two others non-ringed.