Human-led migration 2016
Newsletter 16/08/2016
Yesterday we had our last training flight, a wonderful tour along 60 km in the Salzkammergut (Austria) above Fuschlsee, Wolfgangsee, Mondsee, Irrsee and Wallersee, with a flight altitude of up to 1,300 m msl. All 26 birds followed us; this year´s birds form a very uniform and extremely motivated group.
They were already partly flying in V-formation, which is a clear indication of a successful training and an increasing motivation for the upcoming migration.
With this pleasure flight we concluded the flight training for this year. This coming Thursday, August 18, we´ll start the human-led migration 2016, as long as the weather allows.
Within five to six flight stages, we´re going to fly along completely new terrain: Bramberg – Gerlospass – Zillertal – Pfitscherjoch – Bruneck – Belluno – Po Valley – Po Delta – the Apennines – Laguna di Orbetello (map).
Again, we plan to collect scientific data during this human-led migration. First, all 26 birds will be equipped with GPS data loggers, which will register up to 10 data points per second in high resolution. This huge data set will contribute to an even more differentiated understanding of migration flights. Second, we´re intending to take blood samples of some birds after two longer flights, in order to gain a better understanding of the physiological and hormonal regulation of migration flights. The data collection is done in cooperation with several universities in Austria, Germany and Switzerland.
We will report on the human-led migration on our Facebook page and our website every day; via live tracking, our flights can be followed.
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