Circaetus gallicus information navigator

Category: Regions › France ›


Bernard Joubert’s article on communication of ST Eagles

Dec 10, 2017 / Comment

Photos taken by Bernard Joubert: Short-toed Eagles' communication posturesThe following paper by Bernard Joubert on Short-toed Snake Eagle communication abilities was recently published:

• Bernard JOUBERT, 2017 – Circaète Jean-le-Blanc : des "mots" pour le dire [Short-toed Eagle: "words" to tell] // Rapaces de France, n° 19: pp. 54-55. – Short-toed Eagle. file (Fr) {rough translation}.

The summary

Short-toed Snake Eagles have the rich social language, various tools which help them to express their intentions and relation to behaviour of other representatives of their species. The main problem of studying their behavioural language is defined by difficulties of correct interpretations. Besides various vocal signals, these eagles reveal a rich body language vocabulary, thanks to the extraordinary plasticity of their plumage, which is used for hovering in different airflows while hunting. Simplistically, 3 types of signals are identified: those related to movements, postures and holding of plumage.

Examples of the gestural communication are: aggressive demonstratively slow and strong wing-beats, so-called «vulture» flights, territorial «festoon» display flights.

Communicating through postures includes: an aggressive «albatross» posture, a posture of «angel» which is used for marking a chosen nest for the partner.

Communicating through appearance changes at close contacts comprises states of occipital feathers and pupil size, which can express both tension and relaxation of birds.

This brief review is nothing more than an invitation to observe and puzzle out those various and subtle means of ST Eagles’ communication.

 

Lozère & the Cévennes National Park. Overview for 2016

Mar 29, 2017 / Comment

Just one more annual overview of Short-toed Snake Eagle monitoring in the Cévennes National Park /map/ and Lozère for 2016:

This 2cy Short-toed Eagle was photographed by Bastin MEISE in Central Germany on August 1, 2015Jean-Pierre et Isabelle MALAFOSSE, 2016 – Le Circaète Jean-le-Blanc, résultats pour 2016. Suivi des Rapaces forestiers en Lozère et dans le Parc National des Cévennes [Short-toed Eagle, results for 2016. Monitoring of Raptors in Lozère and in the Cévennes National Park], rapport interne C.R.B.P.O./ P.N.C.: 10 p. – Short-toed Eagle. file (Fr), Short-toed Eagle. file (En) {rough translation}.

Great thanks to Jean-Pierre and Isabelle for sharing this, to Ferenc and Gábor Papp for their kind help in the translation of the text to English!

 

Life of Short-toed Eagles in photos by Bernard Joubert

Feb 19, 2017 / Comment

JOUBERT B. 2010-2016. Haute-LoireThese amazing pictures and text were published in the latest La Plume du Circaète. Few of them were included in the previous galleries of Bernard Joubert on our site. Then, several new photos taken in March 2016 have been added and described by the author. Many thanks to him for sharing the pictures and especially for detailed comments on them, also to Ferenc and Gábor Papp for their kind help in the translation!

Moments of life

During these 20 years, while we have been following the Short-toed Eagles, we could obtain numerous pictures taken in ideal conditions, some of which we later published, however, I never played with the thought seriously that I should take advantage of it since photography is very laborious and has little use in conservation.

Nevertheless, in 2010, I decided that I would give it a try at a nest site where I could do it without any disturbance. In January, I built a hide, which I dug in the ground about twenty metres from the nest. I made a frame of beech and covered it with smaller pine branches. This nest site seemed to attract this particular pair, they visited it during last autumn several times.

I made myself comfortable in the hide in the first days of March, not knowing how remarkable moments and wonderful events of the everyday life I would experience soon.

I used a quite mediocre Nikon camera with 110 mm equivalent focus length*, but still I could record their whole breeding cycle except incubation without being noticed by them.

I would like to share a few pictures…

Bernard Joubert

* – also, photos taken with Panasonic Lumix FZ1000 are included.

 

Monitoring of STE in the Alpes de Haute-Provence, 2016

Dec 25, 2016 / Comment

Numbers of the controlled and probable Short-toed Eagle breeding sites within more than 7 yearsThe latest annual review of Cédric Arnaud:

• Cédric ARNAUD, 2016 – Suivi du Circaète Jean-le-blanc dans les Alpes de Haute-Provence. Rétrospective 2016 [Monitoring of Short-toed Eagle in the Alpes de Haute-Provence. Review for 2016]: 19 p. – Short-toed Eagle. file (Fr) {rough translation}.

The list of contents (Fr): Résultats du suivi 2016 (résultats, répartition) – 3; Suivi de la reproduction (données chiffrées, discussion, taux de reproduction et effort de suivi, échantillon de suivi) – 6; Caractéristiques des nids identifiés (arbres supports, emplacement des nids) – 9; Régime alimentaire – 11; Demandes particulières de suivi ou d’intervention avant travaux – 12; Interventions d’information, de sensibilisation et d’échanges – 13; Fiche de dérangement – 13; Centre de soins de la faune sauvage 04-05 Aquila – 14; Observations particulières – 14; Bases de données en ligne et accessibilité aux partenaires – 15; Participants – 16; Campagne de suivi & objectifs 2017 – 17; Résumé – 18.

 

Meeting in Roquefixade (France), a brief review

Oct 30, 2016 / Comment
Roquefixade: a lot of sites for Short-toed Snake EaglesParticipants of the 4th Circaetus meeting

After Langeac (2004), Nadaillac (2008), and Florac (2012) the 4th Circaetus meeting took place in Roquefixade (the Ariège Department), on October 8th and 9th, 2016. Forty naturalists involved in the monitoring of the species, found themselves there at the invitation of Nature Midi-Pyrénées and LPO Mission Rapaces, to share their experience of the studies. The total number of the meeting participants was about fifty. The program illustrated the diversity of birders’ approaches within their means and goals.

Read the rest of this entry »

 

October Circaetus meeting in France, the 2nd circular

Sep 12, 2016 / Comment

As previously announced, the 4th meeting of the Short-toed Snake Eagle French national network in Roquefixade (the Ariège Department) /map/ is scheduled for October 8th and 9th, 2016. This conference is a meeting between passionate volunteers and not a scientific symposium. The program is not yet complete and it is still possible to propose communications. Any experience in monitoring Short-toed Eagles is of great interest and deserves to be shared.

Please, read the detailed information about the meeting: PDF file (Fr).

 

Summary of work in 2015 by JP. and I. Malafosses

Mar 31, 2016 / Comment

This time the traditional summary on monitoring and conservation of Short-toed Eagles in the Cévennes National Park /map/ is supplemented with the separate English translation through the kind help of Ferenc Papp and Gábor Papp who translated the original report from French to Hungarian and then from Hungarian to English:

A Short-toed Eagle female (the typical plumage) in the eyrie with her youngJean-Pierre et Isabelle MALAFOSSE, 2015 – Le Circaète Jean-le-Blanc, résultats pour 2015. Suivi des Rapaces forestiers en Lozère et dans le Parc National des Cévennes [Short-toed Eagle, results for 2015. Monitoring of Raptors in Lozère and in the Cévennes National Park], rapport interne C.R.B.P.O./ P.N.C.: 10 p. – Short-toed Eagle. file (Fr), Short-toed Eagle. file (En) {rough translation}.