Review of historical breeding sites of the Northern Bald Ibis<i>Geronticus eremita</i>in Syria and south-eastern Turkey

Schenker, Andre; Serra, Gianluca

doi:10.1017/s0959270921000010

Cited by 2 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…Suitable breeding cliffs can be found in the Gaziantep-Sanliurfa area, along the Euphrates River and in lateral tributaries, a fact that was also confirmed by historical breeding records (Schenker and Serra 2022). The vicinity of these potential breeding sites 10-40 km north of the present semi-wild colony at Birecik would make contact and the possible exchange of individuals between the two colonies along the Euphrates valley very likely; however, such an exchange should be avoided to prevent possible disease transmission, e.g.…”

Section: Less Suitable or Unsuitable Areas Criteria For Exclusionsupporting

confidence: 62%

“…The translocation sites in south-eastern Turkey, evaluated using the three key parameters of breeding cliffs, foraging habitats, and water-bodies, are outside the documented former breeding range of Northern Bald Ibis (Schenker and Serra 2022). The reason is the absence of at least one of the three key parameters in the area closer to the existing semi-wild breeding colony at Birecik on the Euphrates.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The study area extends 380–400 km in the east–west direction and 50–70 km in the north–south direction, covering about 23,000 km 2 (Figure 1). This area in south-eastern Turkey is part of south-east Anatolia; this region corresponds to the part of Turkey from which historical breeding sites of Northern Bald Ibis have been recorded (Schenker and Serra 2022).

Figure 1. Overview of the study area and the main landscape types (modified after Kuzucuoglu 2019).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Assessment of suitable habitats using satellite imagery: example of the Northern Bald Ibis Geronticus eremita in south-eastern Turkey

Schenker,

Erhardt

2023

Bird Conservation International

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Summary The increase in the semi-wild Northern Bald Ibis Geronticus eremita population in Birecik, south-eastern Turkey motivated the Working Group of the Agreement on the Conservation of Africa-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) to propose the establishment of a second semi-wild Northern Bald Ibis population in Turkey. This paper presents an assessment approach that identifies potential suitable breeding sites and foraging habitats within a large geographical area of approximately 380 × 60 km (23,000 km2) in south-eastern Turkey, which includes former breeding sites. This approach makes use of open-source and easily available geographical information. The structured approach is based on three key parameters, namely: (1) suitable breeding rocks; (2) suitable foraging habitats: (3) available water-bodies. This led to the identification of three potentially suitable areas around Derik and Yesilli in the Mardin province and around Yarbasi in the Sirnak province. The occurrence and spatial distribution of the three key parameters were mostly identified using Google Earth Pro 2021 within a radius of 10–20 km around the three sites. This procedure allowed an initial, cost-effective identification of potentially suitable areas, providing the basis for subsequent geographically focused comprehensive feasibility studies and on-the-ground risk assessment. However, geopolitical and pragmatic constraints may further affect and restrict a final selection of sites.

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Section: Less Suitable or Unsuitable Areas Criteria For Exclusionsupporting

confidence: 62%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Figure 1. Overview of the study area and the main landscape types (modified after Kuzucuoglu 2019).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Assessment of suitable habitats using satellite imagery: example of the Northern Bald Ibis Geronticus eremita in south-eastern Turkey

Schenker,

Erhardt

2023

Bird Conservation International

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“…The Northern Bald Ibis (NBI, Geronticus eremita) used to live as a migratory species in various areas around the Mediterranean. Known wintering sites were located along the west coast of Africa down to Mauritania and Senegal and along the east coast to Eritrea and Ethiopia [1][2][3][4][5][6]. Human influence and climate change caused the extinction of the Egyptian population already at the end of the third millennium BC and of the European population in the early 17th century [7,8].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Quantification of Foraging Areas for the Northern Bald Ibis (Geronticus eremita) in the Northern Alpine Foothills: A Random Forest Model Fitted with Optical and Actively Sensed Earth Observation Data

2022

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The Northern Bald Ibis (Geronticus eremita, NBI) is an endangered migratory species, which went extinct in Europe in the 17th century. Currently, a translocation project in the frame of the European LIFE program is carried out, to reintroduce a migratory population with breeding colonies in the northern and southern Alpine foothills and a common wintering area in southern Tuscany. The population meanwhile consists of about 200 individuals, with about 90% of them carrying a GPS device on their back. We used biologging data from 2021 to model the habitat suitability for the species in the northern Alpine foothills. To set up a species distribution model, indices describing environmental conditions were calculated from satellite images of Landsat-8, and in addition to the well-proven use of optical remote sensing data, we also included Sentinel-1 actively sensed observation data, as well as climate and urbanization data. A random forest model was fitted on NBI GPS positions, which we used to identify regions with high predicted foraging suitability within the northern Alpine foothills. The model resulted in 84.5% overall accuracy. Elevation and slope had the highest predictive power, followed by grass cover and VV intensity of Sentinel-1 radar data. The map resulting from the model predicts the highest foraging suitability for valley floors, especially of Inn, Rhine, and Salzach-Valley as well as flatlands, like the Swiss Plateau and the agricultural areas surrounding Lake Constance. Areas with a high suitability index largely overlap with known historic breeding sites. This is particularly noteworthy because the model only refers to foraging habitats without considering the availability of suitable breeding cliffs. Detailed analyses identify the transition zone from extensive grassland management to intensive arable farming as the northern range limit. The modeling outcome allows for defining suitable areas for further translocation and management measures in the frame of the European NBI reintroduction program. Although required in the international IUCN translocation guidelines, the use of models in the context of translocation projects is still not common and in the case of the Northern Bald Ibis not considered in the present Single Species Action Plan of the African-Eurasian Migratory Water bird Agreement. Our species distribution model represents a contemporary snapshot, but sustainability is essential for conservation planning, especially in times of climate change. In this regard, a further model could be optimized by investigating sustainable land use, temporal dynamics, and climate change scenarios.

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Review of historical breeding sites of the Northern Bald IbisGeronticus eremitain Syria and south-eastern Turkey

Cited by 2 publications

References 17 publications

Assessment of suitable habitats using satellite imagery: example of the Northern Bald Ibis Geronticus eremita in south-eastern Turkey

Assessment of suitable habitats using satellite imagery: example of the Northern Bald Ibis Geronticus eremita in south-eastern Turkey

Quantification of Foraging Areas for the Northern Bald Ibis (Geronticus eremita) in the Northern Alpine Foothills: A Random Forest Model Fitted with Optical and Actively Sensed Earth Observation Data

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