Early February 2016

The birds we fitted with transmitters have been moving about a bit.  Like the birds we tracked last year, they have not visited the Al Multaqaa landfill consistently since we trapped them.  I have talked to Dick Forsman (author of a umber of books on raptor identification) and he tells me that based on the timing of the moult we observed in the birds we captured, he would think they are probably from southern parts of the species distribution... perhaps Oman.

Below are some maps of the movements of the two vultures we have been tracking (Click on the images and they should open up larger in a separate window.  Currently we identify them by their transmitter numbers (80 and 93), but perhaps we should find names for them. In the first two weeks of February, 80  has been mostly east of Sur (near the village of Wadd) and 93 was on 1 February about 6 km east of Sifa, and since then has been mostly in the Al Amerat area (roosting on power lines near the Oman Oil petrol station south of the road from Boushar).

For the last six months or so we have been collaborating with the Vulture Conservation Foundation. They have featured the work in Oman on their web site http://www.4vultures.org/news/.  Have a look at that and all the other things they are doing for vultures.

Movements of "80" during the first two weeks of February 2016.

Movements of "93" during the first two weeks of February 2016.