Keeping a look-out for Feathered International Arrivals

This is the time of year when raptorphiles in Africa keep their eyes peeled for the arrival of the first over-wintering migratory raptors that arrive here from their breeding grounds in Europe and Asia. Of course, we here in southern Africa get to see some of these arrivals last and the spectacle of large flocks of migratory raptors that is fairly common further north on the continent are not often seen down here with the exception of the smaller migratory falcons (kestrels). A number of species such as Greater Spotted Eagle Aquila clanga and Long-legged Buzzard Buteo rufinus also do not migrate as far south and over-winter further north in Africa, seldom making an appearance down here. Palearctic migratory raptors that are however regularly recorded in southern Africa include Steppe Eagle Aquila nipalensis, Lesser Spotted Eagle Aquila pomarina, Steppe Buzzard Buteo buteo, Osprey Pandion haliaetus, Black Kite Milvus migrans and no less than three Harriers Circus spp. Western Honey Buzzard Pernis apivorus (pic right) is another migrant that was previously considered rare in southern Africa, but have been regularly recorded in recent years. Then there are also a number of migratory Falcon species of which the Amur Falcon Falco amurensis, Red-footed Falcon Falco vespertinus and Lesser Kestrel Falco naumanni are probably best known.

Not all migratory raptors recorded in southern Africa migrate to the Palearctic region, however. Wahlberg's Eagle Aquila wahlbergi for example is an intra-African migrant that arrives in the region from mid-August and starts breeding shortly after their arrival. I recorded quite a few active nests of this species during my 2-day visit to the southern Kruger National Park earlier this week.

Migratory raptors tend to mostly migrate by day and especially the larger species rely on the lift provided by thermals to soar to great heights before heading north or south, depending on their intended destination. Large concentrations of these birds are found in areas where migratory routes converge or where geographical features limit their options with regard to which routes to take. Although I have not yet been fortunate enough to witness these mass congregations of birds at areas such as Eilat in Israel or at a number of other spots on the Mediterranean, it certainly is on my list of things to do. Because of the lack of lift from thermals over large bodies of water such as the ocean, many raptors either avoid flying over such areas or depend on "island hopping" or making use of islands in the ocean as stop-overs before continuing their journey.

One exception to this rule is the Amur Falcon (male in flight pictured right) which is believed to cover the entire distance from the Indian sub-continent to the coast of East Africa in a non-stop flight of almost 6000km over the Indian Ocean, the longest unbroken migratory flight known by any raptor species! This is just part of their very long migratory route from Eastern China and Mongolia where they breed to their wintering grounds on the grasslands and savanna of southern Africa. Due to this very long route, they are often the last migratory raptors to arrive in southern Africa, often in the first days of December only.

Red-footed Falcons migrate south from their breeding grounds in central and eastern Europe and Asia and often cross the Mediterranean in a non-stop flight. Researchers from BirdLife Hungary are currently studying the migratory patterns of this species using satellite tracking and eight birds have been fitted with ptt's to follow their movements. You can now follow these birds on their southward migration clicking on this link: http://www.falcoproject.hu/en/content/show?dattype=sat_birds , just remember to scroll on the date at the bottom to look at the daily progress they are making. We here in southern Africa are very interested in finding out where the Red-footed Falcon over-winters as this species has to date been very poorly represented in our Annual Roost Counts and it would be great to get an idea of where most of these birds spend their time here.

All three the small migratory falcons that over-winter in southern Africa congregate in large numbers and hunt for insects and other prey over the African veld. At night, they roost in large, often exotic trees such as bluegums and tall pines and these roosts can in some cases contain thousands of birds. It is quite a spectacle, especially in late summer when they come in to roost after sunset, just before it gets really dark as they mill above the roost tree, giving their shrill calls which can at times be quite deafening! Then, as if someone gave a signal they will go down into the tree to jostle for a perch to sleep on. It is obviously better to find a spot fairly high up as you can imagine what happens at night with a thousand of your mates sleeping above you after a day of feeding!

This habit of roosting in such large numbers together, provides us in southern Africa with an ideal opportunity to get an estimate of the global population size of these three species. There is currently quite a network of volunteers, mostly based in South Africa, that participate in our Annual Roost Count at almost 90 known roost sites on the Highveld, the Free State, Karoo and elsewhere. If you want to know more about these counts or results from previous year's efforts, visit http://www.kestreling.com/ , a site managed by the coordinator of the EWT-Birds of Prey Working Group's Migratory Kestrel Project (MKP), Anthony van Zyl.

Many of these roosts are located in urban areas as the birds probably consider it a safer option to spend the night in an urban area where there are potentially fewer predators that may disturb or try to make a meal of them. This can cause problems however as the falcons tend to make quite a mess and the ground under these roosts often look as if its covered by snow at the end of summer. We have received quite a few complaints about this over the years, especially when the scare about avian influenza was at its peak. There is however no evidence that these little raptors play any role in the spread of the disease and the biggest issue is normally the mess caused by their droppings and, at times, the noise levels at the roosts which can sometimes continue well into the night.

We are aware of quite a few instances where roosting trees have been chopped down and removed because of this. To attempt to address this, the MKP has designed an attractive sign which can be erected at the various roosts informing people of the significance of such sites and also providing more information on the birds and their migratory routes. Communities, municipalities and bird clubs are encouraged to have these signs made and erected at roosts that occur in their area and we happily provide the proofs to those that are interested in doing so.

Apart from the loss of roosting sites for some, migratory raptors also face a range of other dangers during their travels. Inclement weather and severe storms could delay migration for several days, while some birds could easily be blown off course. For species such as Amur Falcon a storm at sea could result in the death of many birds if they cannot avoid it or find a place to land and rest. There are few records of these falcons descending on ships in large numbers and roosting on every available perch under such circumstances.

By far the most upsetting of these threats is the danger posed by "hunters" in certain areas of the Mediterranean that derive pleasure from shooting large numbers of migratory raptors and other birds out of the sky, often just for the fun of it. Although the EU has implemented strict legislation banning the shooting of these birds, many people still consider it their cultural right to do so and thousands of birds are lost annually during the north- and southward migrations. Bird conservationists, working with local police, often put their own lives at risk to try and apprehend illegal hunters and often camp at key sites to attempt these shootings from taking place. Despite this, many birds are still killed. Examples of these massacres can be seen on the following video-links:

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nIM4UIM3kCs&feature=sdig&et=1254126009.22
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nz2qjQHO4kE&feature=sdig&et=1254126009.22

Considering the long distance that these birds cover and the dangers they face during migration, they deserve special protection across their entire range. A number of migratory raptors are currently listed as globally threatened and protected under the International Convention on Migratory Species: Raptors to which South Africa became a signatory in 2008.