Post-fledging movements of white-tailed eagles: Conservation implications for wind-energy development

Balotari-Chiebao, Fabio; Villers, Alexandre; Ijäs, Asko; Ovaskainen, Otso; Repka, Sari; Laaksonen, Toni

doi:10.1007/s13280-016-0783-8

Cited by 16 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…Increasing knowledge about risks associated with wind farms encouraged the Finnish WTE working group and WWF Finland to compile guidelines for eagle-safe wind farm construction (Nuuja 2017). Telemetry study of dispersing juveniles showed that risks can be reduced by avoiding construction of wind turbines along the coastline and with a 2 km buffer zone between WTE nests and turbines (Balotari-Chiebao et al 2016).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Lead poisoning and other human-related factors cause significant mortality in white-tailed eagles

Isomursu

Koivusaari²,

Stjernberg

et al. 2018

Ambio

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The white-tailed eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla) suffered a severe population decline due to environmental pollutants in the Baltic Sea area ca. 50 years ago but has since been recovering. The main threats for the white-tailed eagle in Finland are now often related to human activities. We examined the human impact on the white-tailed eagle by determining mortality factors of 123 carcasses collected during 2000-2014. Routine necropsy with chemical analyses for lead and mercury were done on all carcasses. We found human-related factors accounting for 60% of the causes of death. The most important of these was lead poisoning (31% of all cases) followed by human-related accidents (e.g. electric power lines and traffic) (24%). The temporal and regional patterns of occurrence of lead poisonings suggested spent lead ammunition as the source. Lead shot was found in the gizzards of some lead-poisoned birds. Scavenging behaviour exposes the white-tailed eagle to lead from spent ammunition.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Lead poisoning and other human-related factors cause significant mortality in white-tailed eagles

Isomursu

Koivusaari²,

Stjernberg

et al. 2018

Ambio

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“…To our knowledge, only Balotari‐Chiebao et al . (2016) primarily described spatial aspects of post‐fledging movements of WTSE in detail, yet no quantitative assessment of excursive behaviour and related interplay with the onset of dispersal currently exists.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Movement patterns of the White‐tailed Sea Eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla): post‐fledging behaviour, natal dispersal onset and the role of the natal environment

Engler

Krone

2021

Ibis

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Exploratory movements and natal dispersal form essential processes during early life history stages of raptors, but identifying the factors shaping individual movement decisions is challenging. Global positioning system (GPS) telemetry thereby provides a promising technique to study movement patterns on adequate spatio‐temporal scales. We analysed data of juvenile White‐tailed Sea Eagles Haliaeetus albicilla (WTSE) in north‐east Germany (n = 24) derived from GPS tracking to extensively analyse movements between fledging and emigration from the natal territory. Our goal was to determine the time point of fledging, characterize pre‐emigration movements and the onset of natal dispersal while investigating the influence of the natal environment. WTSE fledged at an average age of 72 days and showed strong excursive behaviour during the post‐fledging period regarding the number, distance and duration of excursions, yet with high individual variability. Excursive behaviour did not differ between sexes. On average, WTSE left the parental territory 93 days after fledging. The quantity of excursive behaviour delayed the timing of emigration and WTSE tended to postpone their emigration when foraging water was accessible within the boundaries of their parental territory. The overall results suggest that young WTSE assess the quality of the natal environment via pre‐emigration movements and stay in their territory of origin for as long as internal and external conditions allow for it. Our study is one of the first to characterize post‐fledging and natal dispersal movements of young WTSE to such an extent and applies modern techniques to understand related movements in relation to the natal environment. The results emphasize the urgent necessity for the extension of currently existing nest protection periods and guaranteeing sustainable management of potential breeding and foraging grounds for WTSE. Ultimately, the results are relevant for all large raptor species sensitive to human‐related disturbance, as they support the increasing importance of regulations with spatio‐temporal specifications for breeding populations of large raptors in densely human‐inhabited areas with increasing alteration of land.

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“…These resulting circular areas were our study areas. Further details on the space use and ranging behaviour of the study eagles can be found in Balotari-Chiebao et al (2016a).…”

Section: Study Areasmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These include nest-site selection in reintroduced (Evans et al 2010), naturally returning (Treinys et al 2016) and recovering populations (Radović and Mikuska 2009;Sándor et al 2015). Other studies have focused on individual movements with high-precision telemetry data to study home ranges and habitat use (Scholz 2010;Krone et al 2013;May et al 2013;Balotari-Chiebao et al 2016a;Bragin et al 2018). However, the post-fledging period, defined as the period between fledging and dispersal from the natal area (Morrison and Wood 2009), has generally received less attention.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…35-40 days (Cramp and Simmons 1980) or longer (Hardey et al 2013). Dispersal from the natal area occurs in their first year of life, usually between September and January (Hardey et al 2013;Balotari-Chiebao et al 2016a). Here, we use high-precision telemetry data to study the movements of Finnish white-tailed eagles during the post-fledging period.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Habitat use by post-fledging white-tailed eagles shows avoidance of human infrastructure and agricultural areas

et al. 2021

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Habitat use studies provide invaluable information for the conservation of species that suffer from habitat loss or degradation. We used satellite telemetry to study the habitat use of white-tailed eagles (Haliaeetus albicilla) in relation to six habitat classes (artificial surfaces, agricultural areas, forests, semi-natural areas, wetlands and waterbodies) and five forest age classes (0–9, 10–19, 20–59, 60–99 and ≥ 100 years old) during the post-fledging period in Finland. The post-fledging period, defined here as the period between fledging and dispersal from the natal area, is a critical life-history stage. Our primary objective was to provide information that could be integrated into landscape planning, including wind-energy development (which poses a threat to white-tailed eagles). We found that the habitat classes that were selected by the young white-tailed eagles were forests, semi-natural areas (i.e., transitional woodland and bare rock) and wetlands. When using forests, the eagles selected stands of 0–9 years old, presumably due to the use of retention trees surrounded by a clear-cut as perching sites. Conversely, the habitat classes that were avoided were artificial surfaces, agricultural areas and (the immediate vicinity of) waterbodies. We conclude that the conversion of natural habitats into built and agricultural areas is detrimental to young white-tailed eagles because it reduces habitat availability. They, however, appear to be capable of using forests recently impacted by forestry if perch trees are present. Careful landscape planning is needed to protect priority habitats and avoid conflicts with an expanding white-tailed eagle population (e.g., by building wind farms in areas already environmentally disturbed).

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Post-fledging movements of white-tailed eagles: Conservation implications for wind-energy development

Cited by 16 publications

References 25 publications

Lead poisoning and other human-related factors cause significant mortality in white-tailed eagles

Lead poisoning and other human-related factors cause significant mortality in white-tailed eagles

Movement patterns of the White‐tailed Sea Eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla): post‐fledging behaviour, natal dispersal onset and the role of the natal environment

Habitat use by post-fledging white-tailed eagles shows avoidance of human infrastructure and agricultural areas

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