IWMC.org - eNewsletter - October 2001

eNewsletter

October 2001

IWMC
World Conservation Trust

For the Birds

The 4^th Eurasian Conference on Raptors was held in Seville, Spain, from September 25^th through September 29^th. Workshop topics included the status of raptors worldwide, with special emphasis on species of concern in Europe, such as the Red Kite, and the status of the Griffon Vulture in India.

Two major categories of papers were presented in Symposia. One was Endangered Raptors of the World, and the other was discussion of the danger to raptors from the generation and distribution of electricity. Problems of raptor collision with power lines and raptor electrocution, were reported upon, with discussion of the probability of these dangers emerging in the undeveloped world, as new electric power infrastructure is put in place.

Birds of prey are simply not innately programmed to avoid support wires and high tension electric transmission lines. While some raptors, such as Osprey, have been observed building nests on power poles, others have not fared so well, regularly colliding with support wires and electrocuting themselves so often that there is significant concern for species survival. Discussion included ways to lower incidence of these accidents, and it is hoped that future research may reveal effective means of causing raptor avoidance of these facilities. Similarly distressing problems have been reported with wind mills, as these generating facilities are also a major cause of raptor collisions.

General Sessions papers included the following topics: Distribution and Habitat Use, Diseases in Captive and Wild Raptors, Migration Ecology and Dispersal, Genetics and Systematics, Conservation and Management, Behavioral Ecology, Ecophysiology and Ecotoxicology, and Population Ecology.

Meetings such as this, in which communication of dangers and new research solutions to them, are increasingly important to conservation, as they bring together specialists in a number of disciplines. Cross-disciplinary consultation on species status and the resultant development of data bases is a conservation plus for the health of the world environment.

In late October of this year, the Raptor Research Foundation will hold its own annual meeting from the 24^th to the 27^th in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.