The status of imperial eagle in Czechia and effects of illegal persecution

CZECHIA: IMPERIAL EAGLE AND SAKER AND EFFECTS OF ILLEGAL PERSECUTION

Zdeněk Vermouzek, David Horal Czech Society for Ornithology Nature Conservation Agency of the Czech Republic

Eastern Imperial Eagle (Aquila heliaca) in CZ • • • • • • • • •

NW edge of the range no historical breeding records (1948, 1967 – only speculations) 1st breeding attempt (nest building): Soutok, 1997 (near SK and A border) 1st successful breeding: Soutok, 1998 (Austria 1999) 1998 – 2016: total 57 breeding attempts / 37 successful breedings / 72 young reared rapid increase since 2015-16 brings hope for further colonization breeding female ringed as a chick in E Slovakia – this year (2016) 22 years old 2016, one case of successful breeding of female in 3rd cy (2 young reared) in the main breeding area (S Moravia, Břeclav region), winter concentrations of up to 11 birds observed

© Vladimír Gahura

Number of EIE pairs in CZ in 1998—2016

10 9 8 7

pairs

6 5 4 3 2 1 0

year

Breeding of EIE in CZ in 2016

Satellite-tagged EIEs in CZ, 2011-2015

© MME

Main threats - EIE • • • • •

disturbance (forest works, photographers) general raptor persecution (poisoning, shooting) electrocution food offer in intensive farmland windfarms

September 2011, juvenile with transmitter shot at Austrian side and found in border river Thaya © Michael Bierbaumer

Saker Falcon (Falco cherrug) in CZ – I. • NW edge of the range • historical breeding records – 1840s, 1930s (Bohemia) • South Moravia, mainly floodplain forests – first confirmed breeding 1958, probably regularly breeding since then though not confirmed • population monitored since 1976 (Petr Horák et al., later Václav Beran et al.); 1979 already 5 pairs • early 1990s: ca 15 br. pairs • 1999-2010, population estimate 15-20 pairs • always high number of supposed nests not found • reintroductions: from 1980s till 2005, min 250 birds released, later stopped, none of the birds bred in wild © Jozef Chavko

© Václav Beran (1,2), Vlasta Škorpíková (3)

Saker Falcon (Falco cherrug) in CZ – II. • 1989-2007 isolated breeding of 1-2 pairs in NE Moravia / Silesia, 2008-2009 only single bird and later abandoned • 1997-2001 isolated breding of 1 pair in SE Germany (NP Sächsische Schweiz) close to CZ border; 1996, 2002, 2005 only single bird (Ulrich Augst; cf. Augst 2001, Limicola 15: 135-147) • re-colonization of Bohemia?: 2011-2013 2-3 pairs (but 0 in 20142016) • obvious decrease during the last years: 2014-2016 only ca 10 territorial pairs, 5-6 confirmed breedings, 1-5 of them successful, 2-7 young reared annually, very low breeding success • ??? new trend – buildings (1 bird regularly wintering at silo, 1 pair in breeding season in Peregrine – nest box in Bohemia) • 2015-2017, national action plan („rescue programme“) prepared

Main monitored areas

National action plan – project areas

Main threats - SF • • • • • • •

electrocution disturbance (forest works, photographers) general raptor persecution (shooting, poisoning) food offer in intensive farmland windfarms ? food-chain contamination re-introduction experiments

• nts

25.8.2011, Biskupice, © Jozef Chavko

Illegal persecution in Czechia • Free wings programme • led by CSO since 2000 • the only database of bird crime

Bu zz ar d W -t Ea gl M e ar sh H ar ri e r Ea gl e O w l G os ha wk Re d Ki te Bl ak Ki te G ol de n Ea gl e Pe re gr in e

General statistics

Since 2000: 72 species

200

150

100

50

0

General statistics

poisoning shooting destroyed nest other

karbofuran.cz

Distribution of poisonings

LIFE+ PannonEagle • searching for poisoning using a dog • intense co-operation with Police • direct nest monitoring

Thank you!