Bird migration takes off as international volunteers join Raptor Camp
September 2012. Malta has seen a surge in bird migration just as volunteers from across Europe head to the island for two weeks to take part in BirdLife Malta's international bird monitoring and illegal hunting surveillance camp.
In the last seven days the influx of birds has been a treat for anyone out in the Maltese countryside. Bird watchers at Buskett have been seeing up to 300 birds of prey (raptors) daily, with high numbers of Marsh Harriers and Honey Buzzards, as well as sightings of some rare migrants in Malta, like a Saker Falcon seen on Monday.
Bee-eaters
It's not only raptors that can be seen in the skies over Malta during the autumn migration period, with flocks of hundreds of colourful Bee-eaters, accompanied by their chirping calls, visible around the island in recent weeks.
Malta's position on the Central European Migratory Flyway makes it an important stopover for birds heading to Africa in the autumn, having spent the summer at their breeding grounds in Europe. Many will be making the journey for the first time having hatched this year.
Continued: http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/malta-migration012.html#cr
No comments:
Post a Comment