Endangered Vultures in Southeastern Europe on the Brink of Extinction Due to Human Activity

The number of Egyptian vultures dying in Eastern Europe and the Middle East is higher than in sub-Saharan Africa contrary to well-known belief; and part of these disappearances is due to threats of the origin of humans like collision with energy infrastructures, electrocution, direct persecution, or poisoning.

This is revealed in an article released in the Journal of Animal Ecology with the Cavanilles Institute of the University of Valencia participation.

Populations of Migratory Bird

The reduction in long-distance migratory bird populations has always been considered a result of deteriorating states in non-reproductive areas.

While past studies proposed that the reduction in populations of migratory bird in Europe and North America was brought about by threats in Africa and southern countries, new international analysis to monitor the Egyptian vulture (a species of vulture found on the roll of species that has been endangered since 2007)- indicates the opposite. The number of Egyptian vultures who pass away in Eastern and Middle Eastern Europe is more than in sub-Saharan Africa.

GPS Remote Tracking Device

Biologist Pascual López-López (Cavanilles Institute of the University of Valencia) including a team of 38 researchers from 12 countries after a couple of decades of monitoring and studying, has published current results in the Journal of Animal Ecology. The work is managed by Evan Buechley - HawkWatch International U.S.; Ron Efrat - University of the Negev, Israel; Steffen Oppel - Centre for Conservation Science, UK, Cambridge.

Since the early 2000s scientists tagged samples with the use of GPS remote tracking devices to learn their behavior and death rate; they collected and made analysis on satellite tracking data from projects conducted in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, which permitted them to make a study on the movements and landing place of 220 Egyptian vultures armed with GPS transmitters.

Rate of Survival in Sub-Saharan Africa

In addition to an increased rate of survival in sub-Saharan Africa, the scientists discovered that about half of the demises whose cause could be recognized were because of human intervention. These deaths happened in all areas of the study and were mostly due to collision with energy infrastructure, electrocution, undeviating persecution by humans for instance, by shooting with guns or trapping, and most especially in poisoning.

Evan Buechley, lead researcher on the study noted that countries of the south cannot be held for this loss of biodiversity. The scientist added that dealing with human origin's threats to Egyptian vultures and several other migratory species is the duty of all countries that are among the migration routes.

Costs of Ecology

The study addresses fundamental concerns of ecology, like the increased costs of ecology in terms of far-distance migration survival, or crucial benefits such as elevated reproductive productivity at latitudes that are higher.

Pascual López said that more research is needed to assess the important commitments in the matters of survival and reproduction all over the life cycle in this endangered species.
The researcher of the Cavanilles Institute of the University of Valencia concluded that migratory birds like the bustard, which reside between several continents - Asia, Africa, and Europe are obvious instance in this sense.

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