Two young Short-toed Eagles, this time Egidio and Irene, have been fitted with satellite transmitters in Regional Park Gallipoli Cognato /map/ again. You can find the map showing the birds’ migration and also read a short history of the project since 2010 on the same webpage. Thanks to Ugo Mellone for informing us!
Hello everyone,
I am writing to tell a strange incident happened yesterday: a lady calls the CRAS Pignola (PZ, Italy) /map/ saying she had found two «hawks» in trouble and asks if she can deliver. After an hour she arrived with a pair of Short-toed Eagle! The huge female is in good condition and will probably be released in a couple of days.
The male instead had deep lacerations to the chest and throat, so as to show the crop.
Basically the skin in some places no more, and also the pectoral muscle is damaged.
The crop was full ….. and a tail sticking out from the bill….. we pulled out a snake of 1.20 m ….. probably had it in the throat the day before, when the lady found them and brought home with him.
The strange thing is that the lady has told of seeing them sticking up in the air to fall on the ground. At that point they roll in a pond for irrigation, where she intervened.
According to the reconstruction the healthy one (the female) has repeatedly attacked the other’s throat causing him serious injuries.
A reconstruction does not convince me at all, has anyone had such experiences? That is, if by chance you know so much aggressive behavior between Short-toed Eagles?
Consider that the male will almost certainly not survive due to septicemia in very advanced stage.
A new paper on the circuitous migration of Short-toed Eagles from southern Italy /map/ to Africa has been published:
• Mellone U., Limiñana R., Mallìa E. & Urios V., 2011 – Extremely detoured migration in an inexperienced bird: interplay of transport costs and social interactions // Journal of Avian Biology 42: 468-472. – 
(En).
The PDF can be found on Ugo Mellone’s website.
The satellite tracking project continues in Southern Italy this year. Three juvenile Short-toed Eagles were tagged with transmitters in Regional Park Gallipoli Cognato /map/. The project is managed by Giuseppe Lucia and Ugo Mellone (University of Alicante). Maps with the tracks are available on the Regional Park Gallipoli Cognato website.
New satellite tracking project has started in Southern Italy this summer. Two juvenile Short-toed Eagles were tagged with transmitters in Regional Park Gallipoli Cognato /map/. The project is being coordinated by Ugo Mellone. Maps with the tracks are available on the Regional Park Gallipoli Cognato website.