Acrocephalus 2.J (128-129): 83-93, 2006
Red-footed Falcon Falco vespertinus breeding in Magpie’s Pica pica nest built on a pylon
Gnezdenje rde~enoge postovke Falco vespertinus v gnezdu srake Pica pica, zgrajenem na nosilcu daljnovoda
Marco Gustin, Michele Mendi & Mario
Pedrelli
LIPU, Conservation Department, Via Trento 49, 43100 (Pr), Italy, e-mail: marco.gustin@lipu.it
Although in Europe the Red-footed Falcon Falco vespertinus has declined by 20% over the last 20 years (Tucker & Heath 1994, BirdLife International 2004), the species has been constantly increasing in Italy: the first breeding was observed in 1995 in Parma province (Brichetti et al. 1995, Grassi et al. 1999), and in subsequent years the species has expanded westwards (Piacenza, Ambrogio et al. 2001), to the southeast (Modena and Ferrara provinces, (Tinarelli 1997, Piras 1999) and northwards (Treviso province, Nardo & Mezzavilla 1999).
The species usually nests in old corvids nests (up to 13 - 20 m above ground and within 3 - 4 m from tree tops), especially along hedgerows and occasionally on cliffs or on the ground (Cramp 1980, Snow & Perrins 1999).
Figure 1: Red-footed Falcon Falco vespertinus nesting in Magpie’s Pica pica nest built on a pylon
Slika 1: Rde~enoga postovka Falco vespertinus gnezdi v srakinem Pica pica gnezdu, zgrajenem na drogu nosilcu daljnovoda
In Italy, Red-footed Falcons breed preferentially in open agricultural plain landscape dominated by intensive agriculture with tree lines (Mezzano), irrigation ditches and natural and artificial wetlands.
Pairs are usually grouped in loose colonies of 5 to 10 pairs or isolated and situated on abandoned corvids nests on trees.
In mid-May 2004, a pair of Red-footed Falcon occupied a Magpie Pica pica nest built on a pylon in Diolo, Soragna Municipality (Parma; Figure 1). The height of the nest was 10.5 m, and on 19 Jul 2004, 4 pulli were fledged.
In the study area, 29 pairs have been identified and all were nesting in trees (White Poplar Populus alba, English Elm Ulmus campestris, Black Locust Robinia pseudoacacia, etc.), occupying Magpie (80%) and Carrion Crow Corvus corone corone nests (20%). In the neighbouring Piacenza province, two breeding pairs used an old Magpie nest and an old Carrion Crow nest on poplars Populus nigra and Populus sp. in 2000 (Ambrogio et al. 2001).
Povzetek
V Diolu (Parma, Italija) je leta 2004 par rde~enogih postovk Falco vespertinus gnezdil v srakinem Pica pica gnezdu na drogu elektri~nega daljnovoda; 19.7.2004 so se speljali 4 mladi~i.
References
Ambrogio, A., Figoli, G. & Ziotti, L. (2001): Atlante degli
uccelli nidificanti nel Piacentino. - LIPU. BirdLife    International   (2004):    Birds    in    Europe:
population estimates, trends and conservation status.
BirdLife   Conservation   Series   No.   12.   -   BirdLife
International, Cambridge. Brichetti, P. , Arcamone, E. & COI (1995): Comitato
Omologazione Italiano (C.O.I.) 10. Riv. Ital. Orn. 65
(2): 147-149. Cramp, S (1980): Handbook of the Birds of Europe the
Middle East and North Africa. The Birds of the Western
Palearctic, Volume II. Oxford University Press, Oxford. Grassi, L., Licheri, D. & Sponza, S. (1999): Nidificazione
di Falco cuculo Falco vespertinus in provincia di Parma.
Avocetta 23: 141. Nardo, A. & Mezzavilla, F. (1997): Nidificazione di falco
cuculo, Falco vespertinus, in Veneto. - Riv. Ital. Orn. 67
(2): 169-174. Piras, G. (1999): Dati preliminari su una colonia di Falco
vespertinus in provincia di Ferrara (Vertebrata, Aves). -
Soc. Ven. Sc. Nat. 24: 37-40. Snow, D.W. & Perrins, C.M. (1999): The Birds of the
Western   Palearctic.   Concise   Edition,   Vol.   1,   Non-Passerines. - Oxford University Press, Oxford.
83
Kratki prispevki / Short Communications
Tinarelli, R (1997): La nidificazione del falco cuculo Falco
vespertinus nell’Emilia Romagna orientale. - Picus 23:
111-112. Tucker, G.M. & Heath, M.F (1994): Birds in Europe,
Their  Conservation  Status. -  BirdLife International,
Cambridge: 600 pp.
Arrived / Prispelo: 20.3.2006 Accepted / Sprejeto: 5.10.2006
Strong agonistic reaction of territorial male Blackbird Turdus merula against its self-image
Mo~na agonisti~na reakcija teritorialnega samca kosa Turdus merula proti lastni podobi
Al Vrezec
Nacionalni in{titut za biologijo, Ve~na pot 111, SI-1001 Ljubljana, Slovenija, e-mail: al.vrezec@nib.si
In spring, high level of testosterone in males induces the vigorous territorial behaviour and song production (Catchpole & Slater 1995). However, birds usually try to avoid direct agonistic interactions, since they can cause serious injures. Therefore, territorial males communicate with threat postures and song rather than with the direct attacks (Gill 1995). Usually, both visual and vocal stimuli are important for an aggressive male to attack.
However, on 17 Apr 2006 I observed, at Hrastje near Modra`e in NE Slovenia (UTM WM53), a 2Y male Blackbird attacking his self-image in a mirror, although no vocal communication was present (Figure 1). The bird was constantly attacking the mirror through the whole day. When scared, it flew away, but was soon back again repeating its attacking behaviour
Figure 1: Strong agonistic reaction of 2Y male Blackbird Turdus merula against its self-image, recorded on 17 Apr 2006 at Hrastje near Modra`e in NE Slovenia (UTM WM53)
Slika 1: Mo~no agonisti~no vedenje drugoletnega samca kosa Turdus merula proti lastni podobi v ogledalu, opa`eno dne 17.4.2006 v Hrastju pri Modra`ah (SV Slovenija; UTM WM53)
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Acrocephalus 2.J (128-129): 83-93, 2006
(Figure 1). I made a small experiment and placed a predator dummy, a stuffed Tawny Owl Strix aluco, to see if mobbing or predator-induced behaviour would prevail over social or territorial behaviour as known in some other bird species, e.g. Arabian Babbler Turdoides squamiceps (Sommer & Mundry 2005). At the beginning, the territorial Blackbird inspected the dummy, but later continued with attacks on its own image. When the mirror was removed, the bird came back several times to search for the “intruder”.
The search lasted for approximately 15 minutes, and then the male engaged in singing or vocal display. The case shows that the territoriality in mating season can induce, at least in some males, strong agonistic reaction to intraspecific intruders. There is a question, however, whether this is a general phenomenon or is just restricted to some more aggressive or young males establishing their territories.
Povzetek
Opazovanje drugoletnega teritorialnega samca kosa Turdus merula, ki je 17.4.2006 v zaselku Hrastje pri Modra`ah (UTM WM53, SV Slovenija) silovito napadal lastno podobo v ogledalu. Z agresivnim vedenjem ni prenehal niti tedaj, ko mu je bila nastavljena lutka plenilca, naga~ena lesna sova Strix aluco. Napadati je nehal {ele po odstranitvi ogledala. Primer ka`e na mo~ne agresivne odzive teritorianih samcev v gnezditveni sezoni, zato bi bilo v prihodnje koristno preveriti, ali se pojav ka`e le pri nekaterih osebkih ali gre za splo{en pojav.
References
Catchpole, C.K. & Slater, P.J.B. (1995): Bird Song. –
Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. Gill,  F.B.  (1995):  Ornithology.  –  W.H.  Freeman  and
Company, New York. Sommer, C. & Mundry, R. (2005): Do social rank and
predator type influence the structure of predator-induced
calls in Arabian babblers? pp. 30 In: Trilar, T. (ed.): XX.
Congress of International BioAcoustic Council (IBAC),
Book  of   Abstracts.   –   Prirodslovni  muzej   Slovenije,
Ljubljana.
Arrived / Prispelo: 19.4.2006 Accepted / Sprejeto: 5.10.2006
The number of Spanish Sparrow Passer hispaniolensis nests in the Neretva delta (S Dalmatia, Croatia)
[tevilo gnezd travni{kega vrabca Passer hispaniolensis v delti Neretve (J Dalmacija, Hrva{ka)
Jasmina Mu`ini}1 & JenŐ J. Purger2
1 Institute for Ornithology CASA, Gunduli}eva 24, HR-10000 Zagreb, Croatia, e-mail: jasmina@hazu.hr
2 University of Pécs, Institute of Biology, Ifjúság útja 6, H-7624 Pécs, Hungary, e-mail: purger@ttk. pte.hu
The Neretva delta region has probably played an important part in the expansion of the Spanish Sparrow, as this was the source area from where these birds colonized north Dalmatia and the islands further away in the late 1970’s (Luka~ 2004). Relying on his own data and literature reports on only 353 known nests in South Dalmatia, Luka~ (2004) estimates the amount of Spanish Sparrows breeding in the region at around 3,500 - 19,000. As there is little information about Spanish Sparrows breeding in the Neretva delta (Kralj 1996), it is important to publish as much data about the number of breeding pairs as possible.
Between 3 - 10 Apr 2006, we travelled several times from Metkovi} to Lake Kuti. Along the 11 km long road between Bijeli Vir and Kuti, a total of 263 Spanish Sparrow nests were counted (no nests were found in Dubravica and Kosa). The distribution of the nests was as follows: in Bijeli Vir (YH16) 186 nests in 21 poplar trees Populus sp., and 2 in 1 willow Salix sp. In Mlini{te (YH16) 21 in 1 plane tree Platanus sp., 14 in 1 mulberry tree Morus sp., and 28 in 4 willows. In single poplars in Mislina (YH16), Bad`ula (YH16, YH15) and Kuti (YH15), 2, 7 and 3 nests were found, respectively.
The number of these nests (263) provides information on the breeding period of the previous year (2005). In case some of the breeding pairs built new nests for the second clutch, that meant somewhat less pairs. However, it is not known how many of the nests were lost during the winter, and how many of the nests were overlooked by the observers. Also, a certain number of nests inside the colonies might have been used by other sparrow species (Passer domesticus,
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Kratki prispevki / Short Communications
P. montanus). The number of Spanish Sparrows that may breed in the area seems to be a realistic figure. Any deviation in the survey result could be eliminated by repeating the counts both in the breeding season and after the leaves have fallen away.
Povzetek
Avtorja sta napravila popis travni{kih vrabcev Passer hispaniolensis v delti Neretve (J Dalmacija, Hrva{ka) na osnovi {tetja gnezd v aprilu 2006. Skupno {tevilo gnezd je bilo 263.
References
Kralj, J. (1996): Povijesni pregled pti~jeg svijeta podru~ja donjeg toka rijeke Neretve: rezultati istra`ivanja od 1817 – 1988. – Hrvatsko ornitolo{ko dru{tvo, Zagreb.
Luka~, G. (2004): About the widening of the range and the status of the Spanish Sparrow (Passer hispaniolensis) in Croatia at the beginning of the 21th century. – Pakleni~ki zbornik 2: 113–122.
Arrived / Prispelo: 17.8.2006 Accepted / Sprejeto: 5.10.2006
Nova opazovanja selitve ujed na Volovji rebri (J Slovenija)
New observations of birds of prey migrating over Volovja reber (S Slovenia)
Toma` Miheli~1 & Igor Brajnik2
1 DOPPS, pp 2990, SI-1001, Ljubljana, Slovenija, e-mail: tomaz.mihelic@dopps-drustvo.si
2 DOPPS, pp 2990, SI-1001, Ljubljana, Slovenija, e-mail: igor.brajnik@dopps-drustvo.si
Ujede se med selitvijo pogosto odzivajo na topografijo, kar se ka`e v ve~jem koncentriranju teh ptic vzdol` gorskih grebenov in prelazov (Haugh 1972). V sklopu raziskav selitve ujed v Sloveniji je bilo v jeseni 2006 organizirano opazovanje na ve~ lokacijah po Sloveniji. Opazovanja so se za~ela konec avgusta in `e prvi dan opazovanja so se na Volovji rebri (UTM VL44) pokazali zanimivi rezultati.
Selitev ujed na Volovji rebri smo opazovali 29.8.2006 med 7.30 in 15.00 h. Pono~i je de`evalo po vsej Sloveniji, zjutraj pa se je v zahodni Sloveniji razjasnilo. Meja med obla~nostjo na vzhodu in jasnino na zahodu je bila prek celotnega opazovalnega dne nad to~ko opazovanja. Na obmo~ju je nad tlemi pihal srednje mo~an SV veter, zra~ne mase pa so se sode~ po oblakih `e kakih 100 - 200 m nad temi premikale v nasprotni smeri.
Selitev sva ve~ino ~asa opazovala dva opazovalca na grebenu med Veliko Milanjo (1099 m) in Devinom (1088 m). Za opazovanje sva uporabljala daljnoglede s karakteristikami 7 × 42 in 19 × 42, ter teleskopa 20 -60 × 80 ter {irokokotni 30 × 80.
Ob prihodu na opazovalno to~ko sta z vrha Lunjevice (1014 m) zletela dva beloglava jastreba Gyps fulvus, ki sta tu verjetno preno~evala, saj je bila Lunjevica v tem ~asu {e v megli oz. oblakih. Jastreba sta sedela na boru in odletela proti SZ. Grebenu sta se spet pribli`ala nad Belimi ovcami (1030 m) in do Milanke (948 m) letela okrog 50 m nad grebenom.
Naj{tevil~nej{a vrsta znotraj ~asa opazovanja je bil rjavi lunj Circus aeruginosus. Prvi osebek je preletel obmo~je ob 8.15, zadnji pa ob 11.01. Lunji so preletavali obmo~je posami~ ali v skupinah do max. 5 osebkov. Skupaj je bilo opazovanih 22 rjavih lunjev. Lunji so {ir{e obmo~je Volovje rebri preletavali v dveh zgostitvah. Devet jih je preletelo greben med Belimi ovcami in Milanko, ter nadaljevali let v smeri JZ. Greben so preleteli v pasu med 10 in 100 metri nad tlemi. Druga zgostitev rjavih lunjev, po kateri je
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Acrocephalus 2.J (128-129): 83-93, 2006
obmo~je preletelo 12 ptic, je bila vzhodno od Velike Milanje, kjer so ptice prek Devina, prav tako v pasu pod 100 m, nadaljevale pot naravnost proti jugu.
Zelo podobno kot rjavi lunji so obmo~je preletavali sr{enarji Pernis apivorus. Opa`enih je bilo 10 sr{enarjev, od katerih se je en par vedel teritorialno (svatovski let) in se je stalno zadr`eval nad Suhim vrhom (1171 m). Drugi so obmo~je preleteli na istih mestih kot rjavi lunji. Svatovanje para sr{enarjev se je ~asovno ujemalo s preletom drugih sr{enarjev in rjavih lunjev. Teritorialno vedenje para je zanimivo, saj naj bi sr{enarji gnezdi{~a v tem ~asu `e zapu{~ali (Cramp 1980).
Od sele~ih se vrst je bil opazovan {e ribji orel Pandion haliaetus, ki je greben preletel na vi{ini okrog 40 metrov, med Veliko Milanko in Devinom, ter nadaljeval proti JZ.
Druge opazovane vrste ujed smo uvrstili med stalnice. V ~asu opazovanja je obmo~je dvakrat preletel planinski orel Aquila chrysaetos, prek celega dopoldneva so se med Belimi ovcami in Devinom pojavljali skobec Accipiter nisus, postovka Falco tinnunculus ter kanje Buteo buteo v skupinah po najve~ 2 osebka. Sele~e se vrste ujed smo opazovali samo med 8.15 in 11.10 h, stalnice pa tudi v preostalem ~asu opazovanja.
Pri opazovanjih je bila zanimiva predvsem nizka vi{ina preleta ujed nad grebenom, kar pripisujemo vetrnim razmeram. Ocenjujemo, da so bile razmere za jadranje s pomo~jo vzgornjikov zelo slabe. Noben od sr{enarjev ni izkori{~al vzgornjikov za jadranje, kljub temu da sodijo v tipi~no skupino selivk, ki se selijo s pomo~jo jadranja v vzgornjikih (Spar 1997). Enako smo opazili pri rjavih lunjih, za katere v nasprotju z drugimi lunji prav tako velja, da v ugodnih razmerah v vzgornjikih jadrajo kar pogosto (Spar & Bruderer 1997). Let obeh vrst se prav tako ni razlikoval od leta ribjega orla, ki ne velja za jadralca in v nasprotju z jadrajo~imi vrstami pogosto pre~ka ve~ja obmo~ja brez termike (Kerlinger 1985). Vse tri vrste so nadaljevale pot v nizkem ravnem jadrajo~em letu, pogosto prekinjenem s kratkimi intervali zamahovanja s perutmi. Na celotni opazovani poti, ki je bila zaradi dobre vidljivosti dolga ve~ kilometrov, so se tlom najbolj pribli`ale edino na grebenu Volovje rebri. Razlog za to je bil verjetno v izkori{~anju vetra, ki je nad grebenom pihal v smeri njihovega leta, zra~ne mase pa so se na vi{jih nadmorskih vi{inah pomikale v obratni smeri.
interesting species were observed: 2 Griffon Vultures Gyps fulvus resting on the ground, 22 Marsh Harriers Circus aeruginosus, 10 Honey Buzzards Pernis apivorus and 1 Osprey Pandion haliaetus. The birds were flying in the belt below 100 m above the ridge.
Reference
Cramp, S. (1980): Handbook of the Birds of Europe the
Middle  East  and  North  Africa.  Volume  II.  Oxford
University Press, Oxford. Haugh, J.R. (1972): A study of Hawk Migration in Eastern
North America. - Search 2: 1-60. Kerlinger, P. (1985): Water-crossing behavior of raptors
during migration. - Willson Bulletin 97(1): 109-113. Spar, R. (1997): Flight strategies of migrating raptors; a
comparative study of interspecific variation in flight
characteristics. - Ibis 137(3): 523-535. Spar, R. & Bruderer, B. (1997): Migration by flapping
or soaring: Flight stategies of Marsh, Montagu’s and
Pallid Harriers in Southern Israel. - The Condor 99:
458-496.
Arrived / Prispelo: 1.9.2006 Accepted / Sprejeto: 5.10.2006
Summary
Preliminary results of the observation of birds of prey during migration on Volovja reber (UTM VL44, S Slovenia) are presented. On 29 Aug 2006 several
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New data on the Birds of Ponor Mountains, (W Bulgaria)
Novi podatki o pticah pogorja Ponor (Z Bolgarija)
Stoyan Ch. Nikolov
Central Laboratory of General Ecology (BAS), Gagarin 2, BG-1113 Sofia, Bulgaria, e-mail: nikolov100yan@abv.bg
Up to year 2000 only fragmentary data about birds of the Ponor Mountain existed. After that more extensive studies were carried out. The bird species composition and status was determined by Stoyanov (2001) and breeding bird distribution and number by Nikolov (2003) and Nikolov & Vassilev (2003 & 2004). The aim of the present study was to broaden the knowledge of bird species composition and status.
Figure 1: Location of the Ponor Mountains in Bulgaria Slika 1: Polo`aj pogorja Ponor v Bolgariji
The Ponor Mountains is a part of the Western Stara Planina (Stefanov 2002; Figure 1) and belongs to the continental moderate climatic zone (Vulev 1997). The study area comprises a total of 272 km2 between 360 and 1601 m a.s.l. and borders to the west on the Ginska River, to the south on the Iskretska River; to the east on the Iskar River and abuts to north on the Koznica Mountains. The eastern border of the Ponor Mountains lies on the Via Aristotelis migration route. The major plant communities are formed by trees such as oak Quercus sp., hornbeam Carpinus sp. and Beech Fagus sylvatica (Bondev 1991).
The present study was carried out during 8 years between 1996 and 2003, for a total of 115 days of
fieldwork. All habitats were visited and observations were made in all seasons. The status of species was described following Svensson et al. (2000) with some modifications: rB - resident breeding species: present during the whole year; mB - migratory breeding species: coming in spring, breeding in study area and migrating in autumn; P - passage visitor: present only during migration; W - winter visitor: present only during winter period; V - vagrant species: present occasionally, out of migration period and not breeding or wintering in the in the studied area; E - extinct species: conspicuous resident breeders in the study region, which were not proved for the present survey; NF - species with no fixed status: shy resident or migrating breeders, found during past works, but not observed during the present survey.
Till 2001 176 species were known for the Ponor Mountains (Stoyanov 2001). During the present study 9 species unrecorded before in the study area were found (Table 1).
As a final result the number of bird species observed in the Ponor Mountains is 185. Most of them are
Status of birds in the Ponor mountains
Figure 2: Proportion of different groups of birds according to their status in the Ponor Mountains (legend see text)
Slika 2: Dele` skupin ptic glede na njihov status v pogorju Ponor (legenda glej tekst)
breeders – 115 species (Nikolov & Vassilev 2004), where 60 are resident and 55 are migratory. The rest 70 species are not breeding in the study area: the passage visitors during spring and autumn migrations are 41, the winter visitors - 15, the vagrants - 4, these with no fixed status - 9 and there is 1 extinct species (Figure 2).
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ACROCEPHALUS 2.J (128-I29): 83-93, 200Ć
Table 1: New species found in the Ponor Mountains during the present survey, their status and observation details (abbreviations see text).
Tabela 1: Nove vrste najdene med raziskavo v pogorju Ponor, njihov status in podrobnosti opazovanja (okraj{ave glej tekst).
Species / Vrsta	Status		Date / Datum
Circus pygargus	P		9 May 1999
Pandion haliaetus	P		15 Oct 2000
Gallinula chloropus	mB	Apr	- Sep; 2001 & 2002
N
Location / Kraj
male
NF
rB
Feb - Jun; 2000 & 2002
mB	May 2002	6 (3 pairs)	the hut Petrohan
mB	24 Jun 2002	2 (pair)	northwest of Breze village
P	9 Apr 1999	3	Zimevishki Kladenec valley
	15 Oct 2000	5	Shiroki Val valley
P	15 Oct 2000	1	outflow of Iskretska river
Alectoris chukar
Aegolius funereus
Apus pallida Anthus campestris Anthus pratensis
Acrocephalus schoenobaenus
Acknowledgments: My most cordial thanks go to Associate Prof. Tanyo Michev for his valuable advice and guidance during the preparation of this work.
Povzetek
^lanek prispeva nove podatke o sestavi in statusu nekaterih vrst ptic v pogorju Ponor, Z Bolgarija. Ugotovljenih je bilo devet novih vrst, obdobje raziskave pa je trajalo kar 8 let, opravljenih pa je bilo 115 terenskih dni med leti 1996 in 2003. Skupno {tevilo vrst tega obmo~ja se je tako povi{alo s 176 na 185 vrst. Na pogorju gnezdi 115 vrst (60 stalnic in 55 selivk), ostale vrste pa so: 41 preletnih gostov, 15 zimskih gostov, 4 klate`i, 1 izumrla vrsta in 9 vrst, ki imajo nejasen status.
References
2 km north of Zimevitza village at 1400 m a.s.l.
along the Iskar river near Svoge town
small marsh along the Iskar river near Svoge town
according to the information from local rangers the Chukar was introduced in the region (Manastirishte area) for hunt in the 90s but it was not confirmed during the present study
near Dobravitza village in 2000
and near Brakyovtzi village in 4 males
2002 in Beech Fagus sylvatica
forest (Nikolov 2003).
NiKOLOv, S. & Vassilev, V. (2003): Census of breeding birds
in the Ponor Mountains, western Bulgaria. - Bird Census
News 16 (2): 42-56. Nikolov, S. & Vassilev, V. (2004): Breeding bird atlas of
the Ponor Mountains, western Bulgaria. - Sandgrouse
26(1): 7-22. Štefanov, P. (2002): [The Stara Planina mountain system].
pp. 31-33 In: Geography of Bulgaria. - For Com, Sofia.
(in Bulgarian) Stoyanov,  G.  (2001):   [The birds of Ponor Mountain].
- Forestry Ideas 25: 101-125. (in Bulgarian) Svensson, L., Grant, P., Mullarney, K. & Zetterström,
D.  (2000): The most complete guide to the birds of
Britain and Europe. - Harper Collins, London. Vulev, S. (1997): [Climatic regions – Physical geography of
Bulgaria]. - BAS, Sofia. (in Bulgarian)
Arrived / Prispelo: 9.2.2005 Accepted / Sprejeto: 5.10.2006
Bondev, I. (1991): The Vegetation in Bulgaria - Univ. Press
“St. Kl. Ohr.”, Sofia. (in Bulgarian) Nikolov,   S.  (2003):   New  locality   in   unusual   habitat
of  Tengmalm’s  Owl  (Aegolius  funereus)  in  Bulgaria.
- Buteo 13: 89-93.
4
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A short review of the status of Bonnelli’s Eagle Hieraaetus fasciatus in Bulgaria
Kratek pregled statusa kraguljega orla Hieraaetus fasciatus v Bolgariji
Stoyan Ch. Nikolov1, Bojidar Ivanov2, Petar
Iankov3 & Jean-Louis Dambiermont4
1 Central Laboratory of General Ecology (Bulgarian Academy of Sciences), 2 Gagarin Str., BG-1113 Sofia, Bulgaria, e-mail: nikolov100yan@abv.bg
2 Institute of Zoiology, 1 bul. Tzar Osvoboditel, BG-1000 Sofia, Bulgaria, e-mail: bai_bobo@yahoo.com
3 Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds/ BirdLife Bulgaria, BG-1111 Sofia, P.O. Box 50, Bulgaria, e-mail: petar.iankov@gmail.com
4 5A Their des malades, B-4500, Belgium, e-mail: jean-louis.dambiermont@skynet.be
The Bonnelli’s Eagle is rather rare in Bulgaria with breeding population estimated at one to three pairs for the 1996 - 2002 period (BirdLife International 2004) and one possible breeding pair for 2004 (Nankinov et al. 2004). There have been seven published localities of the species so far and only one nest found in the country (Simeonov et al. 1990). Present below are three observations of Bonnelli’s Eagle in the region of Madjarovo town in the Eastern Rhodopes.
On 3 May 2003 two adult birds were observed flying together and taking liberties with one another in the region of Madjarovo town (UTM MG01). On 25 May 2005 a 3y Bonnelli’s Eagle was observed soaring at about 2 km north of Madjarovo town. The bird flew away in north-eastern direction. Second 3y Bonnelli’s Eagle was observed near the dam of the Studen Kladenetz Reservoir (UTM LG80) flying to the east along the Arda River at about 120 m height at 12.02 h on 21 May 2006. The bird was in transitional plumage with reddish-brown underbody and under wing-covers beginning to develop under wing black bar and dark trailing tail band (Svensson et al. 2000).
It is probable that the Bonnelli’s Eagle breeds in the area of Madjarovo town because the landscape there corresponds a lot to the habitat preferred by the species: arid, sparsely vegetated mountainous areas, with foothills, river valleys, gorges and steep cliffs (Real et al. 1997).
90
Povzetek
Avtorji podajajo nove podatke o pojavljanju kraguljega orla v letih 2003, 2005 in 2006 v bli`ini mesta Madjarovo v vzhodnih Rodopih (UTM MG01; Bolgarija), kjer je mo`na tudi gnezditev.
References
BirdLife International (2004): Birds in Europe: population estimates, trends and conservation status. – BirdLife Conservation Series No. 12, Cambridge, UK.
Nankinov, D. et al. (2004): Breeding totals of the ornitho-fauna in Bulgaria. – Green Balkans, Plovdiv.
Real, J., Palma, L. & Rocamora, G. (1997): Bonnelli’s Eagle Hieraaetus fasciatus In: Hagemeijer, E.J.W. & Blair M.J. (eds.). The EBCC Atlas of European breeding birds: their distribution and abundance. – T & AD Poyser, London;.
Simeonov, S., Michev, T. & Nankinov, D. (1990): Fauna of Bulgaria. Vol. 20, Aves, Part I. – BAS, Sofia.
Svensson, L., Grant, P. , Mullarney, K. & Zetterström, D. (2000): The most complete guide to the birds of Britain and Europe. – HarperCollins Publishers, London.
Arrived / Prispelo: 23.6.2006 Accepted / Sprejeto: 5.10.2006
Acrocephalus 2.J (128-129): 83-93, 2006
A recent evidence of the spring migration of Mediterranean Shearwater Puffinus yelkouan along the Bulgarian Black Sea coast
Novi dokazi o pomladni selitvi sredozemskega viharnika Puffinus yelkouan vzdol` obale ^rnega morja v Bolgariji
Stoyan Ch. Nikolov1, Dimiter Georgiev2,
Bojidar Ivanov3 & Petar Iankov4
1 Central Laboratory of General Ecology (Bulgarian Academy of Sciences), 2 Gagarin Str., BG-1113 Sofia, Bulgaria, e-mail: nikolov100yan@abv.bg
2 Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds/ BirdLife Bulgaria, P.o. Box 492, BG-9000 Varna, Bulgaria, e-mail: dimiter.georgiev@neophron.com
3 Institute of Zoiology, 1 bul. Tzar Osvoboditel, BG-1000 Sofia, Bulgaria, e-mail: bai_bobo@yahoo.com
4 Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds/ BirdLife Bulgaria, BG-1111 Sofia, P.O. Box 50, Bulgaria, e-mail: petar.iankov@gmail.com
After the 1970s, the Mediterranean Shearwater has been observed passing along the western Black Sea coast in flocks of up to 13,500 or even 20,000 individuals in some years (Simeonov et al. 1990). It is known that the species is more numerous near the Bulgarian Black Sea coast between July and October (Simeonov et al. 1990). The data presented below for the past four years shows that the species passes in significant numbers near the Bulgarian Black Sea coast also in April and May.
In 2003: on 28 Apr, a flock of 30 Mediterranean Shearwaters was observed offshore in the region of Durankulak Lake (UTM PJ23); on 29 Apr, two groups of birds (consisting of 170 and 70 birds) were seen flying to the north offshore near Cape Kaliakra (UTM PJ01); on 5 May, a group of 272 Mediterranean Shearwaters flying to the north at about 1 km far from the coast was seen in the region of the village of Kamen Brjag (UTM PJ12) (Nikolov, B., Nikolov, S. & Ducov, A. pers. comm.); on 10 May, a flock of 2,000 individuals was seen off the coast of Lake Atanasovsko (UTM NH03) (Michev et al. 2004); between 14 and 17 May, several groups consisting of 1,200 to 10,000 birds were observed feeding at the entrance of Varna
Gulf (UTM NH87) (Mitev, D. pers. comm.); on 19 and 20 May, few groups consisting of 5,400 to 12,000 birds were observed feeding at a distance of 400 to 2,000 m from the coast and spending the night in smaller groups (up to 500 – 1,000 individuals) in the region of Cape Kaliakra; on 28 May, a flock of 50 birds was seen flying to the north at a distance about 1 km from the coast in the region of Lake Alepu (UTM NG95). In 2004: on 9 May, two flocks consisting of 100 and 200 individuals were observed in the gulf of the Sveti Vlas village (UTM NH25) (Papps, S. pers. comm.); on 10 and 11 May, groups of respectively 6 and 21 birds were observed at the foregoing site; on 11 May, a flock of 10 birds was seen offshore flying to the south near Irakli Bay (UTM NH73); on 13 May, 8 individuals were observed flying to the north on Cape Kaliakra; on 30 May, 2 birds were seen near the Sveti Vlas village. In 2005: on 10 May, one Mediterranean Shearwater was seen in the sea flying to the east in the region of the Sarafovo village (UTM NH41) and 9 birds (6 flying to the south-east, and 3 to the north) were observed offshore on Cape Emine (UTM NH72); on 12 May, a flock consisting of 450 individuals was observed offshore in the region of Durankulak Lake. In 2006: on 23 May, 50 birds were seen flying to the south at 1 km offshore in the region of Durankulak Lake at 9.30 h and a group of about 1,300 individuals was observed feeding together with 10 dolphins at a distance of 500 – 800 m from the coast at 16.30 h in the region of the Kamen Brjag village; on 25 May, a group of 3 birds was seen flying to the north at about 1.5 km distance from the coast in the region of Nesebar town (UTM NH25) at 10.00 h and 53 birds were seen feeding at a distance of about 2 km offshore in the region of Cape Kaliakra at 16.30 h; on 26 May, a group of 4 birds flying to the north at about 1 km distance from the coast was seen in the area of Lake Durankulak at 10.05 h and two groups consisting of 1,300 and 1,000 individuals were observed simultaneously flying to the north at distances 1.5 and 2 km respectively from the coast in the region of the Kamen Brjag village between 16.20 and 16.50 h.
Povzetek
Avtorji podajajo nove dokaze o spomladanski selitvi sredozemskega viharnika Puffinus yelkouan vzdol` obale ^rnega morja v Bolgariji; navajajo podatke za zadnja {tiri leta (2003 – 2006), ki ka`ejo, da se sredozemski viharnik pojavlja redno in v precej{njem {tevilu, najve~je zabele`eno {tevilo pa je bilo 12.000 osebkov.
9I
Kratki prispevki / Short Communications
References
Simeonov, S., Michev, T. & Nankinov, D. (1990): Fauna of Bulgaria. Vol. 20, Aves, Part I. – BAS, Sofia.
Michev, T., Profirov, L., Dimitrov, M. & Nyagolov, K. (2004): The Birds of Lake Atanasovsko. – Bourgas Wetlands Publication Series No 5, Bourgas.
Arrived / Prispelo: 23.6.2006 Accepted / Sprejeto: 5.10.2006
Evidence for the regular spring and autumn migration of Terek Sandpiper Xenus cinereus along the western Black Sea coast
Dokazi o redni spomladanski in jesenski selitvi sabljastega martinca Xenus cinereus vzdol` zahodne obale ^rnega morja
Stoyan Ch. Nikolov1, Dimiter Georgiev2,
Bojidar Ivanov3 & Petar Iankov4
1 Central Laboratory of General Ecology (Bulgarian Academy of Sciences), 2 Gagarin Str., BG-1113 Sofia, Bulgaria, e-mail: nikolov100yan@abv.bg
2 Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds/ BirdLife Bulgaria, P.O. Box 492, BG-9000 Varna, Bulgaria, e-mail: dimiter.georgiev@neophron.com
3 Institute of Zoiology, 1 bul. Tzar Osvoboditel, BG-1000 Sofia, Bulgaria, e-mail: bai_bobo@yahoo.com
4 Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds/ BirdLife Bulgaria, BG-1111 Sofia, P.O. Box 50, Bulgaria, e-mail: petar.iankov@gmail.com
The Terek Sandpiper is a regular migrant to the region of the eastern Black Sea with important route between the Ural and Volga rivers and birds also passing through Transcaucasus and Ukraine (Dementiev & Gladkov 1951). The species is considered to be a rare visitor or vagrant farther west, including the Balkans (Cramp 1983) and there are few published observations in Bulgaria (Nankinov et al. 1997, Michev et al. 2004). On 16 Sep 2002, a juvenile Terek Sandpiper was seen on the beach of nature protected site Poda (UTM NH03). The species was observed at the same site in the ensuing year (on 16 Sep). A Terek Sandpiper was seen on 22 and 31 Sep 2004 at Shablenska Tuzla salty lake (UTM PJ22). The observed individuals stayed separately from the other Waders presented at the foregoing sites. On 14 Aug 2005, two adult Terek Sandpipers in summer plumage were seen together at 14.00 h in the northern part of Pomorie Lake saltpans (UTM NH51). The birds were staying close (3 - 5 meters) to a number of Curlew Sandpipers Calidris ferruginea, Little Stints C. minuta, Dunlins C. alpina, Kentish Plovers Charadrius alexandrinus, Avocets Recurvirostra avocetta and one Broad-billed Sandpiper Limicola falcinellus all feeding around. The two Terek Sandpipers flew away together at 14.15 h. The species was observed during the next year at the same site:
92
Acrocephalus 2.J (128-129): 83-93, 2006
in the middle part of Pomorie Lake saltpans between 9.06 and 9.28 h local time on 24 May 2006. It was an adult bird in breeding plumage: the body upperparts were brown-grayish with black feather centers, the legs were dingy orange and the up-curved bill was black with basal third tinged dirty orange (Cramp 1983). The observed Terek Sandpiper stayed alone and did not join the Curlew Sandpipers, Little Stints, Avocets, Kentish and Ringed Plovers Charadrius hiaticula that were present nearby.
The foregoing observations reveal that almost every year several Terek Sandpipers pass (in spring and in autumn) along the western Black Sea coast through the Via Pontica flyway. In some years, some individuals even rest in Bulgaria during the summer (Petkov 2005).
Povzetek
Avtorji povzemajo nove podatke o pojavljanju sabljastega martinca Xenus cinereus na ~rnomorski obali (V Bolgarija). Posami~ni primerki so se v obdobju 2002 - 2006 pojavljali skoraj vsako leto, spomladi in jeseni.
Reference
Cramp, S. (1983): The Birds of the Western Palearctic. Vol.
III – Oxford Univ. Press., Oxford. Dementiev, G. & Gladkov, N. (1951): The Birds of Soviet
Union.Vol. III – Moscow. Michev, T., Profirov, L., Dimitrov, M. & Nyagolov,
K. (2004): The Birds of Lake Atanasovsko. – Bourgas
Wetlands Publication Series No 5, Bourgas. Nankinov, D., Simeonov, S. & Michev, T. (1997): Fauna
of Bulgaria. Vol. 26, Aves, Part II. – Prof. M. Drinov,
Sofia. Petkov,  N.  (2005): Terek  Sandpiper  Xenus cinereus.  –
Acrocephalus 124: 59–60.
Arrived / Prispelo: 23.6.2006 Accepted / Sprejeto: 5.10.2006