News on Nader

As recently, Aylal is still in the southern part of Souss-Massa National Park. Nader, on its side, is in the north half but between 24th and 26th it went to the Taghazout area, north to Agadir. The accuracy ot its tag doesn't allow us to know where exactly it went, but it confirms that the narrow coastal steppe north to Agadir is very important for Northern Bald Ibis during some periods of the year.
Nevertheless, Nader returned to the area around Massa mouth on 26th.

Data from Aylal and Nader for the first two weeks in December

Since the beginning of December, Aylal and Nader have stayed inside the Souss-Massa National Park. They are, nevertheless, separate most of the time, judging by the records received from their transmitters. Nader is in the north part of SMNP and Aylal is just south of the Massa river mouth. 
The field data show that the birds are moving in flocks of about thirty.

Aylal and Nader in the south of Souss-Massa National Park

Since mid-November, our ibis have established themselves more or less in the southern area of Souss-Massa National Park, occasionally visiting the coastal area outside the protected area. Over the last week they have both established themselves in a roosting place south of the Oued Massa mouth. The entire southern area of the park is made up of cliffs, most of them inaccessible, where ibis can easily find places to spend the night. Both birds are feeding in the neighbouring fields, not far from the roost.

Southward Bound

After returning from its' trip to the Tamri area on 31st October, Aylal moved southwards, beyond the mouth of the Oued Massa.Early in the morning of November 5th it was very close to the southernmost border of the Souss Massa National Park. It seems that it had travelled too far to return to its' usual roosting spot and so had stayed overnight in the area, probably with other ibis.
Aylal's behaviour is providing us with a lot of information on the patterns of movement and habitat use of this species and we hope to enhance out knowledge even more by tagging more individuals in the future.
Nader has been a bit less adventurous lately and didn't join Aylal for the journey southwards, staying instead in the northern area of the National Park.

Aylal's escape

Aylal, the adult ibis tagged with the GPS transmitter, made a getaway to the Tamri colony last Sunday (30th) and spent the night there before returning to the Souss Massa National Park on Halloween. Nader didn't follow its parent, confirming that although the birds are using the same feeding and roosting areas, they are now independent.

Although we are missing some data on Aylal's journey up north, on its return to its feeding grounds in the National Park it flew almost 60 km between two consecutive records, which equates to an average speed of at least 30 km/hour. This is the most northerly point reached by Aylal since it was tagged in July, and it actually went beyond the colony to some feeding grounds in the north where it has probably bred in the past.

Tagged ibis, together again

It seems that in recent weeks, Nader and Aylal have met again. 

The data received from their tags indicate that both are back in the northern area of ​​Souss Massa National Park, confirming the great importance of preserving this area where ibis spend a large part of the year, using the large and rich feeding areas.

They have probably lost their family behaviour due to the time they spent appart, but they move in the same group at least during part of the day.

How do Aylal and Naders’ satellite tags work?

It has been mentioned in previous posts that the tags on Aylal and Nader have different levels of accuracy and this is due to the fact that two different systems are being used: Argos and GPS. Both tags use the Argos system but one tag also has a GPS transmitter.

The Argos system is named after the mythical giant with 100 eyes, who was the perfect, all-seeing guardian. This system is based on a series of six polar-orbiting satellites, i.e. which pass over both poles, at an altitude of 850 km. These satellites belong to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT) and other agencies will join in the future.

Each platform, i.e. the animal or object carrying the transmitter, can be reached, in theory, about 14 times per day. The position of the platform is calculated using the Doppler Effect, i.e. the variation in the wave frequency (produced by the transmitter) between two objects moving relative to each other (in our case the transmitter and the satellite).

Overlap of the areas covered by two successive passes of the Argos satellite system (http://www.argos-system.org)

With the Argos system there is a certain limit to the number of locations that can be received from each transmitter but it is ideal for following long-distance movements of birds. It is also small and light - the transmitter on Nader weighs just 9 grams (1/4 ounce).

The transmitter on Aylal also carries a GPS unit. The GPS system relies on a denser system of satellites, with 24 satellites (four in each of six different orbits), at an altitude between 10,100 and 20,200 km. Each transmission from the platform is picked up by several satellites and the position can be calculated by measuring the distance from each one. This provides an accurate, three-dimensional location (latitude, longitude and altitude). Not surprisingly, this accurate technique was originally developed for military use.

GPS satellite network, showing how the number of satellites visible from the transmitter varies according to the earth’s rotation and the orbit pattern of the satellites (from Wikipedia)

This type of transmitter was deployed on Aylal to provide us with detailed data on small-scale movement patterns of the species within its normal range. This will help us to identify any potential threats and will complement the day to day work done by the guards on the ground. The transmitter on Nader will provide us with more broad-scale data on the large-scale dispersal patterns of juveniles of this species. This is the same system which has been used to tag ibises in Syria and Turkey.

Funds for these two tags were donated by Dublin Zoo (Aylal) and RSPB (Nader) and installation costs were covered by a collaborative project with Prince Albert II of Monaco Fundation. An expert from MMARM led the tagging operation and provided advice on the capture and taggingprocedures.

The fundraising campaign for the conservation of the bald-headedibis aims to raise money to buy more transmitters such as these, to tag moreindividuals. The data provided from these tags greatly increases our knowledgeof species movements and habitat use and allows us to identify potentialthreats.  

Where are the ibis now?

Aylal and Nader are still apart – Aylal (the adult) has spent a few days moving around the area north of Agadir but hasn’t remained in the same specific location for any length of time. Nader (the juvenile) is still in the SMNP. Although it was known before that Tamri birds visited the Souss-Massa area outside the breeding season, the data from Aylal and Nader are providing important details on the frequency of these movements. 

Latest news from “our” ibis in Souss-Massa: Nader and Aylal have separated

The signals received from Aylal show that she moved north at the beginning of last week, back to the area where she was caught 2 months ago and she has been using the same roosting and feeding areas as before.

While the accuracy of the transmitter on Nader is lower, we saw that this bird also moved north, but was in the vicinity of Tamri, near the river mouth. Soon after, it returned to the Souss-Massa National Park, so it is apparent that the parent and its young have separated, at least for now.

Although the information provided from Nader is less accurate than for Aylal, keep in mind that up till now we had no data at all on the relationship between parents and their offspring after fledging, so this represents a big leap forward in our knowledge of this species. It is possible of course that the other parent is still with Nader, but this is unlikely. 

Nader and Aylal are still in SMNP

The latest data received from the satellite tags show that Aylal and Nader (a mother and her offspring) are still active and are within the Souss-Massa National Park.

These two birds were tagged at the end ofJuly near Agadir and then moved, most likely with the whole group of about 20 adults and young ibis, to the National Park.  This movement is normal outside of the breeding season as there is plenty of food available at this time of year in the north of the park. Aylal (the adult bird) will most likely remain in this area for several months until the breeding season begins again. Thanks to the highly accurate GPS data we know that it only uses about two feeding sites, all within the protected area. As for Nader, we’ll have to wait and see – it may remain with the rest of the group or it may disperse to a new area within the next few weeks, as many juveniles do at this point in their lives. 

Nader and Aylal have moved to SMNP

GOOD NEWS!

The signals from our two bald ibis have revealed that they have left the area north of Agadir, where they were feeding and sleeping in a nearby cliff, and have moved to the Souss Massa National Park.

Nader and Aylal are still together, although the signal from Aylal is more accurate due to the GPS tag. In the last few days, this bird has been in the steppes area around the Massa estuary, accompanied by a large number of other ibis.

Studies of habitat availability and use have indicated that this national park area is very important to this species outside the breeding season.

The fact that we caught and tagged two related individuals is great as it will provide valuable insight into when the separation of juveniles from their parents occurs. 

Two bald ibis fitted with satellite tags

After being fitted with individual transmitters, two bald ibis can now be tracked by satellite. This project was made possible by a collaboration between the High Commission for Water and Forests and the Fight Against Desertification and SEO/Birdlife, along with the participation of other organisations. An adult will carry a transmitter donated by Dublin Zoo and a young fledging will carry one donated by the RSPB. Both will be automatically recharged using sunlight, which will enhance their lifespan. This activity is considered a priority in the Species Action Plan, both nationally and internationally and all the required permits have been obtained.

Group of northern bald ibis in a foraging area

One expert from the wildlife management unit, from the General Directorate of the Natural Environment and Forest Policy of the Spanish Ministry of Environment, Rural and Marine Affairs, travelled to Agadir to support us in this project. The birds were caught with special traps, which had been designed for this particular species and habitat, to prevent any harm to the birds. The team was compossed by staff from Morocco Country Program of BirdLife and from the Souss Massa National Park. The knowledge and experience of the local wardens was particularly invaluable in determining the best location for catching the birds.

On July 19^th, the first bird was captured in an area north of Agadir. This adult was thought to be a female and was released without any problems, carrying a 30g GPS tag. At dusk, Mahdi Boujmaa, one of the guards, confirmed that the bird had gone to roost and was in perfect condition. The next day we tried (unsuccessfully) to catch in an area further north but the ibis had moved further south to feed. On day 21 we tried again in the first area but the ibis seemed suspicious and we spent most of the day trying to catch them. We also saw the bird which had been fitted with a tag a couple of days earlier. It can be seen in the picture below – it was feeding normally and the tag didn’t appear to be causing any discomfort. 

Aylal, hunting (PhotoVíctor García Matarranz)

You can see the transmitter and antenna in the photo, on the leg and resting on the ground, and the PVC ring for remote reading. 

Have you seen how they catch their prey? Look in the picture below how it grabs the scorpion by the sting. Undoubtedly this is a skill learned when they’re young, demonstrating the importance of learning in these birds. And to think that we’d been sitting on that ground all day!

(PhotoVíctor García Matarranz)

Finally we managed to catch another ibis. This one was a young one, which fitted perfectly with our plan. The adult, equipped with the GPS transmitter will allow us to monitor feeding and resting areas within the National Park, while the young bird, which will probably travel over much greater distances, was fitted with a tag which will provide less detailed information, but will still be sufficient to enhance our knowledge of juvenile dispersal patterns. 

In this photo, you can see our conservation officer, Adel Abouajaja, releasing Nader (PhotoVíctor García Matarranz)

The adult was named Aylal, which means bird in Amazigh, and the juvenile was named Nader, which means rare in Arabic, and both perfectly describes the status of this species. While we were handling the juvenile ibis, the rest of the group, about 20 birds, waited nearby. When Nader was released, the whole group flew off and circled around, waiting for the juvenile to join them. We couldn’t help but feel a deep emotion, seeing the social character of this species and the care given to their young.

Two days later, Boujmaa called us to say that Aylal had been seen feeding Nader, so it is the parent, probably the mother – what a coincidence! And this may allow us to learn about the family life of this species as well.

Soon we will be able to provide more information on Aylal and Nader, as the data from the satellite tags becomes available.

Mohammed EL Bekkay (Director of PNSM), Victor Matarranz (expert on wildlife from MMARM), Adel Bouajaja (conservation officer) with Aylal , Widad Oubrou (biologist, responsible for monitoring and research at SMNP) and Imad Cherkaoui (responsible for BirdLife International Morocco Country Programme)

The funds raised through donations helps to enhance activities such as this, both by funding the daily work of the wardens, and to fund similar tagging projects in the future. Help us to preserve Northern Bald Ibis.