Tracking data highlight the importance of human-induced mortality for large migratory birds at a flyway scale

Juan Serratosa; Steffen Oppel; Shay Rotics; Andrea Santangeli; Stuart H.M. Butchart; Luis S. Cano-Alonso; Jose Luis Tellería; Ryno Kemp; Aaron Nicholas; Aigars Kalvāns; Aitor Galarza; Aldina M.A. Franco; Alessandro Andreotti; Alexander N.G. Kirschel; Alex Ngari; Alvaro Soutullo; Ana Bermejo-Bermejo; Andre J. Botha; Andrea Ferri; Angelos Evangelidis; Anna Cenerini; Anton Stamenov; Antonio Hernández-Matías; Arianna Aradis; Atanas P. Grozdanov; Beneharo Rodríguez; Çağan H. Şekercioğlu; Catuxa Cerecedo-Iglesias; Christina Kassara; Christos Barboutis; Claire Bracebridge; Clara García-Ripollés; Corinne J. Kendall; Damijan Denac; Dana G. Schabo; David R. Barber; Dimitar V. Popov; Dobromir D. Dobrev; Egidio Mallia; Elena Kmetova-Biro; Ernesto Álvarez; Evan R. Buechley; Evgeny A. Bragin; Fabrizio Cordischi; Fadzai M. Zengeya; Flavio Monti; Francois Mougeot; Gareth Tate; Georgi Stoyanov; Giacomo Dell'Omo; Giuseppe Lucia; Gradimir Gradev; Guido Ceccolini; Guilad Friedemann; Hans Günther Bauer; Holger Kolberg; Hristo Peshev; Inês Catry; Ingar J. Øien; Isidoro Carbonell Alanís; Ivan Literák; Ivan Pokrovsky; Ivar Ojaste; Jan E. Østnes; Javier de la Puente; Joan Real; João L. Guilherme; José C. González; José M. Fernández-García; Juan Antonio Gil; Julien Terraube; Karel Poprach; Karen Aghababyan; Katharina Klein; Keith L. Bildstein; Kerri Wolter; Kjell Janssens; Kyle D. Kittelberger; Lindy J. Thompson; Mansoor H. AlJahdhami; Manuel Galán; Marcin Tobolka; Mario Posillico; Mario Cipollone; Marion Gschweng; Māris Strazds; Mark Boorman; Mark Zvidzai; Marta Acácio; Marta Romero; Martin Wikelski; Matthias Schmidt; Maurizio Sarà; Michael J. McGrady; Mindaugas Dagys; Monique L. Mackenzie; Muna Al Taq; Msafiri P. Mgumba; Munir Z. Virani; Nicolaos I. Kassinis; Nicolò Borgianni; Nikki Thie; Nikos Tsiopelas; Nili Anglister; Nina Farwig; Nir Sapir; Oddmund Kleven; Oliver Krone; Olivier Duriez; Orr Spiegel; Osama Al Nouri; Pascual López-López; Patrik Byholm; Pauline L. Kamath; Paweł Mirski; Peter Palatitz; Pietro Serroni; Rainer Raab; Ralph Buij; Ramūnas Žydelis; Ran Nathan; Rauri C.K. Bowie; Rigas Tsiakiris; Richard Stratton Hatfield; Roi Harel; Rolf T. Kroglund; Ron Efrat; Ruben Limiñana; Salim Javed; Saša P. Marinković; Sascha Rösner; Sasha Pekarsky; Shiv R. Kapila; Simeon A. Marin; Šimon Krejčí; Sinos Giokas; Siranush Tumanyan; Sondra Turjeman; Sonja C. Krüger; Steven R. Ewing; Stoycho Stoychev; Stoyan C. Nikolov; Tareq E. Qaneer; Theresa Spatz; Thomas G. Hadjikyriakou; Thomas Mueller; Todd E. Katzner; Tomas Aarvak; Tomáš Veselovský; Torgeir Nygård; Ugo Mellone; Ülo Väli; Urmas Sellis; Vicente Urios; Vladimír Nemček; Volen Arkumarev; Wayne M. Getz; Wolfgang Fiedler; Willem Van den Bossche; Yael Lehnardt; Victoria R. Jones

doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2024.110525

Tracking data highlight the importance of human-induced mortality for large migratory birds at a flyway scale

Juan Serratosa^*, Steffen Oppel, Shay Rotics, Andrea Santangeli, Stuart H.M. Butchart, Luis S. Cano-Alonso, Jose Luis Tellería, Ryno Kemp, Aaron Nicholas, Aigars Kalvāns, Aitor Galarza, Aldina M.A. Franco, Alessandro Andreotti, Alexander N.G. Kirschel, Alex Ngari, Alvaro Soutullo, Ana Bermejo-Bermejo, Andre J. Botha, Andrea Ferri, Angelos EvangelidisAnna Cenerini, Anton Stamenov, Antonio Hernández-Matías, Arianna Aradis, Atanas P. Grozdanov, Beneharo Rodríguez, Çağan H. Şekercioğlu, Catuxa Cerecedo-Iglesias, Christina Kassara, Christos Barboutis, Claire Bracebridge, Clara García-Ripollés, Corinne J. Kendall, Damijan Denac, Dana G. Schabo, David R. Barber, Dimitar V. Popov, Dobromir D. Dobrev, Egidio Mallia, Elena Kmetova-Biro, Ernesto Álvarez, Evan R. Buechley, Evgeny A. Bragin, Fabrizio Cordischi, Fadzai M. Zengeya, Flavio Monti, Francois Mougeot, Gareth Tate, Georgi Stoyanov, Giacomo Dell'Omo, Giuseppe Lucia, Gradimir Gradev, Guido Ceccolini, Guilad Friedemann, Hans Günther Bauer, Holger Kolberg, Hristo Peshev, Inês Catry, Ingar J. Øien, Isidoro Carbonell Alanís, Ivan Literák, Ivan Pokrovsky, Ivar Ojaste, Jan E. Østnes, Javier de la Puente, Joan Real, João L. Guilherme, José C. González, José M. Fernández-García, Juan Antonio Gil, Julien Terraube, Karel Poprach, Karen Aghababyan, Katharina Klein, Keith L. Bildstein, Kerri Wolter, Kjell Janssens, Kyle D. Kittelberger, Lindy J. Thompson, Mansoor H. AlJahdhami, Manuel Galán, Marcin Tobolka, Mario Posillico, Mario Cipollone, Marion Gschweng, Māris Strazds, Mark Boorman, Mark Zvidzai, Marta Acácio, Marta Romero, Martin Wikelski, Matthias Schmidt, Maurizio Sarà, Michael J. McGrady, Mindaugas Dagys, Monique L. Mackenzie, Muna Al Taq, Msafiri P. Mgumba, Munir Z. Virani, Nicolaos I. Kassinis, Nicolò Borgianni, Nikki Thie, Nikos Tsiopelas, Nili Anglister, Nina Farwig, Nir Sapir, Oddmund Kleven, Oliver Krone, Olivier Duriez, Orr Spiegel, Osama Al Nouri, Pascual López-López, Patrik Byholm, Pauline L. Kamath, Paweł Mirski, Peter Palatitz, Pietro Serroni, Rainer Raab, Ralph Buij, Ramūnas Žydelis, Ran Nathan, Rauri C.K. Bowie, Rigas Tsiakiris, Richard Stratton Hatfield, Roi Harel, Rolf T. Kroglund, Ron Efrat, Ruben Limiñana, Salim Javed, Saša P. Marinković, Sascha Rösner, Sasha Pekarsky, Shiv R. Kapila, Simeon A. Marin, Šimon Krejčí, Sinos Giokas, Siranush Tumanyan, Sondra Turjeman, Sonja C. Krüger, Steven R. Ewing, Stoycho Stoychev, Stoyan C. Nikolov, Tareq E. Qaneer, Theresa Spatz, Thomas G. Hadjikyriakou, Thomas Mueller, Todd E. Katzner, Tomas Aarvak, Tomáš Veselovský, Torgeir Nygård, Ugo Mellone, Ülo Väli, Urmas Sellis, Vicente Urios, Vladimír Nemček, Volen Arkumarev, Wayne M. Getz, Wolfgang Fiedler, Willem Van den Bossche, Yael Lehnardt, Victoria R. Jones^*

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

Human-induced direct mortality affects huge numbers of birds each year, threatening hundreds of species worldwide. Tracking technologies can be an important tool to investigate temporal and spatial patterns of bird mortality as well as their drivers. We compiled 1704 mortality records from tracking studies across the African-Eurasian flyway for 45 species, including raptors, storks, and cranes, covering the period from 2003 to 2021. Our results show a higher frequency of human-induced causes of mortality than natural causes across taxonomic groups, geographical areas, and age classes. Moreover, we found that the frequency of human-induced mortality remained stable over the study period. From the human-induced mortality events with a known cause (n = 637), three main causes were identified: electrocution (40.5 %), illegal killing (21.7 %), and poisoning (16.3 %). Additionally, combined energy infrastructure-related mortality (i.e., electrocution, power line collision, and wind-farm collision) represented 49 % of all human-induced mortality events. Using a random forest model, the main predictors of human-induced mortality were found to be taxonomic group, geographic location (latitude and longitude), and human footprint index value at the location of mortality. Despite conservation efforts, human drivers of bird mortality in the African-Eurasian flyway do not appear to have declined over the last 15 years for the studied group of species. Results suggest that stronger conservation actions to address these threats across the flyway can reduce their impacts on species. In particular, projected future development of energy infrastructure is a representative example where application of planning, operation, and mitigation measures can enhance bird conservation.

Original language	English
Article number	110525
Number of pages	16
Journal	Biological Conservation
Volume	293
Early online date	5 Apr 2024
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2024.110525
Publication status	Published - 1 May 2024

Keywords

Bird conservation
Energy infrastructure
Illegal killing
Mortality
Poisoning
Renewable energy
Tracking technologies

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Access to Document

10.1016/j.biocon.2024.110525Licence: CC BY-NC

Serratosa_2025_BC_Tracking-data-human-induced-mortality-migratory-birds_CC
© 2024 The US Geological Survey and The Author(s). This article is available under the Creative Commons CC-BY-NC license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) and permits non-commercial use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Final published version, 3.43 MBLicence: CC BY-NC

Cite this

Serratosa, J., Oppel, S., Rotics, S., Santangeli, A., Butchart, S. H. M., Cano-Alonso, L. S., Tellería, J. L., Kemp, R., Nicholas, A., Kalvāns, A., Galarza, A., Franco, A. M. A., Andreotti, A., Kirschel, A. N. G., Ngari, A., Soutullo, A., Bermejo-Bermejo, A., Botha, A. J., Ferri, A., ... Jones, V. R. (2024). Tracking data highlight the importance of human-induced mortality for large migratory birds at a flyway scale. Biological Conservation, 293, Article 110525. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2024.110525

@article{d097ff43c7f3489f8ecdbceaf205244a,

title = "Tracking data highlight the importance of human-induced mortality for large migratory birds at a flyway scale",

abstract = "Human-induced direct mortality affects huge numbers of birds each year, threatening hundreds of species worldwide. Tracking technologies can be an important tool to investigate temporal and spatial patterns of bird mortality as well as their drivers. We compiled 1704 mortality records from tracking studies across the African-Eurasian flyway for 45 species, including raptors, storks, and cranes, covering the period from 2003 to 2021. Our results show a higher frequency of human-induced causes of mortality than natural causes across taxonomic groups, geographical areas, and age classes. Moreover, we found that the frequency of human-induced mortality remained stable over the study period. From the human-induced mortality events with a known cause (n = 637), three main causes were identified: electrocution (40.5 %), illegal killing (21.7 %), and poisoning (16.3 %). Additionally, combined energy infrastructure-related mortality (i.e., electrocution, power line collision, and wind-farm collision) represented 49 % of all human-induced mortality events. Using a random forest model, the main predictors of human-induced mortality were found to be taxonomic group, geographic location (latitude and longitude), and human footprint index value at the location of mortality. Despite conservation efforts, human drivers of bird mortality in the African-Eurasian flyway do not appear to have declined over the last 15 years for the studied group of species. Results suggest that stronger conservation actions to address these threats across the flyway can reduce their impacts on species. In particular, projected future development of energy infrastructure is a representative example where application of planning, operation, and mitigation measures can enhance bird conservation.",

keywords = "Bird conservation, Energy infrastructure, Illegal killing, Mortality, Poisoning, Renewable energy, Tracking technologies",

author = "Juan Serratosa and Steffen Oppel and Shay Rotics and Andrea Santangeli and Butchart, {Stuart H.M.} and Cano-Alonso, {Luis S.} and Teller{\'i}a, {Jose Luis} and Ryno Kemp and Aaron Nicholas and Aigars Kalvāns and Aitor Galarza and Franco, {Aldina M.A.} and Alessandro Andreotti and Kirschel, {Alexander N.G.} and Alex Ngari and Alvaro Soutullo and Ana Bermejo-Bermejo and Botha, {Andre J.} and Andrea Ferri and Angelos Evangelidis and Anna Cenerini and Anton Stamenov and Antonio Hern{\'a}ndez-Mat{\'i}as and Arianna Aradis and Grozdanov, {Atanas P.} and Beneharo Rodr{\'i}guez and {\c S}ekercioğlu, {{\c C}ağan H.} and Catuxa Cerecedo-Iglesias and Christina Kassara and Christos Barboutis and Claire Bracebridge and Clara Garc{\'i}a-Ripoll{\'e}s and Kendall, {Corinne J.} and Damijan Denac and Schabo, {Dana G.} and Barber, {David R.} and Popov, {Dimitar V.} and Dobrev, {Dobromir D.} and Egidio Mallia and Elena Kmetova-Biro and Ernesto {\'A}lvarez and Buechley, {Evan R.} and Bragin, {Evgeny A.} and Fabrizio Cordischi and Zengeya, {Fadzai M.} and Flavio Monti and Francois Mougeot and Gareth Tate and Georgi Stoyanov and Giacomo Dell'Omo and Giuseppe Lucia and Gradimir Gradev and Guido Ceccolini and Guilad Friedemann and Bauer, {Hans G{\"u}nther} and Holger Kolberg and Hristo Peshev and In{\^e}s Catry and {\O}ien, {Ingar J.} and Alan{\'i}s, {Isidoro Carbonell} and Ivan Liter{\'a}k and Ivan Pokrovsky and Ivar Ojaste and {\O}stnes, {Jan E.} and {de la Puente}, Javier and Joan Real and Guilherme, {Jo{\~a}o L.} and Gonz{\'a}lez, {Jos{\'e} C.} and Fern{\'a}ndez-Garc{\'i}a, {Jos{\'e} M.} and Gil, {Juan Antonio} and Julien Terraube and Karel Poprach and Karen Aghababyan and Katharina Klein and Bildstein, {Keith L.} and Kerri Wolter and Kjell Janssens and Kittelberger, {Kyle D.} and Thompson, {Lindy J.} and AlJahdhami, {Mansoor H.} and Manuel Gal{\'a}n and Marcin Tobolka and Mario Posillico and Mario Cipollone and Marion Gschweng and Māris Strazds and Mark Boorman and Mark Zvidzai and Marta Ac{\'a}cio and Marta Romero and Martin Wikelski and Matthias Schmidt and Maurizio Sar{\`a} and McGrady, {Michael J.} and Mindaugas Dagys and Mackenzie, {Monique L.} and {Al Taq}, Muna and Mgumba, {Msafiri P.} and Virani, {Munir Z.} and Kassinis, {Nicolaos I.} and Nicol{\`o} Borgianni and Nikki Thie and Nikos Tsiopelas and Nili Anglister and Nina Farwig and Nir Sapir and Oddmund Kleven and Oliver Krone and Olivier Duriez and Orr Spiegel and {Al Nouri}, Osama and Pascual L{\'o}pez-L{\'o}pez and Patrik Byholm and Kamath, {Pauline L.} and Pawe{\l} Mirski and Peter Palatitz and Pietro Serroni and Rainer Raab and Ralph Buij and Ramūnas {\v Z}ydelis and Ran Nathan and Bowie, {Rauri C.K.} and Rigas Tsiakiris and Hatfield, {Richard Stratton} and Roi Harel and Kroglund, {Rolf T.} and Ron Efrat and Ruben Limi{\~n}ana and Salim Javed and Marinkovi{\'c}, {Sa{\v s}a P.} and Sascha R{\"o}sner and Sasha Pekarsky and Kapila, {Shiv R.} and Marin, {Simeon A.} and {\v S}imon Krej{\v c}{\'i} and Sinos Giokas and Siranush Tumanyan and Sondra Turjeman and Kr{\"u}ger, {Sonja C.} and Ewing, {Steven R.} and Stoycho Stoychev and Nikolov, {Stoyan C.} and Qaneer, {Tareq E.} and Theresa Spatz and Hadjikyriakou, {Thomas G.} and Thomas Mueller and Katzner, {Todd E.} and Tomas Aarvak and Tom{\'a}{\v s} Veselovsk{\'y} and Torgeir Nyg{\aa}rd and Ugo Mellone and {\"U}lo V{\"a}li and Urmas Sellis and Vicente Urios and Vladim{\'i}r Nem{\v c}ek and Volen Arkumarev and Getz, {Wayne M.} and Wolfgang Fiedler and {Van den Bossche}, Willem and Yael Lehnardt and Jones, {Victoria R.}",

note = "Funding: Aldina M. A. Franco's work was financed by the FEDER Funds through the Operational Competitiveness Factors Program — COMPETE and by National Funds through FCT – Foundation for Science and Technology within the scope of the project Birds on the move {\textquoteleft}POCI-01-0145-FEDER-028176{\textquoteright}, by InBIO (UID/BIA/50027/2013 and POCI-01-0145-FEDER-006821), and by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), via the EnvEast DTP, and NERC and Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), via the NEXUSS CDT Training in the Smart and Autonomous Observation of the Environment. Funding for the development of the GPS tracking devices was provided by NERC (NE/K006312), Norwich Research Park Translational Fund, University of East Anglia Innovation Funds and Earth and Life Systems Alliance funds. Andrea Santangeli acknowledges support from the European Commission through the Horizon 2020 Marie Sk{\l}odowska-Curie Actions individual fellowships (Grant no. 101027534). Alessandro Andreotti thanks for the funding received by the European Commission through the Egyptian vulture LIFE project “Measures for the conservation of the Egyptian vulture in Italy and in the Canary Islands” (LIFE16/NAT/IT/000659) and the support provided by Carabinieri Forestali, Stazione Ornitologica Calabrese and De Rerum Natura. Tagging and tracking of Eleonora's falcons from Greece were conducted in the framework of the projects {\textquoteleft}LIFE13 NAT/GR/000909 Conservation measures to assist the adaptation of Falco eleonorae to climate change{\textquoteright} with the financial support of the European Union LIFE Instrument and the Green Fund and {\textquoteleft}Survey and Conservation of Seabirds in Greece{\textquoteright} funded by A.G. Leventis foundation. Flavio Monti acknowledges support from “Progetto Falco pescatore{"} (and project collaborators) and wants to thank the Tuscan Archipelago National Park, the Maremma Regional Park, the Diaccia Botrona Natural Reserve, the WWF Orbetello Lagoon Natural Reserve and the WWF Orti-Bottagone Marsh Natural Reserve, under the Tuscany Region administration, in Italy. Joan Real and Antonio Hern{\'a}ndez-Mat{\'i}as are deeply grateful to Grup de Naturalistes d'Osona-ICHN, Grup d'Anellament de Calldetenes-Osona (GACO), Servei de Biodiversitat de la Generalitat de Catalunya, Ferrovial S.A., Consoci per a la Gesti{\'o} de Residus Urbans d'Osona, Ministerio de Transici{\'o}n ecol{\'o}gica of Spain (V. Matarranz and A. D{\'i}az). Funding was provided by project PID2020-117909RBI00 funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 from the National Plan of the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities and Red El{\'e}ctrica de Espa{\~n}a SAU, Fundaci{\'o} Catalunya-La Pedrera and Diputaci{\'o}n de Barcelona. Joao L. Guilherme was funded by the European Union{\textquoteright}s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Sk{\l}odowska-Curie Actions grant agreement no. 766417. This research was supported by generous donors, including B. Bahar, S. İ{\c s}men, {\"O}. K{\"u}lah{\c c}ıoğlu, B. {\"O}ver, B. {\"O}zkan, A. Peterson, E. {\"O}zg{\"u}r, S. Reyent, C. Sertoğlu, B. Watkins, the Sigrid Rausing Trust and the Whitley Fund. {\c C}.H·S is grateful to H. Batubay {\"O}zkan and Barbara Watkins for their support of the Biodiversity and Conservation Ecology Lab at the University of Utah School of Biological Sciences. orinne J. Kendall and collaborators are very grateful for the donor support provided by Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), AZA SAFE (Saving Animals From Extinction), Dallas Zoo, Disney Conservation Fund, Leiden Conservation Foundation, National Geographic Society, Taronga Conservation Society Australia, and The Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund. Damijan Denac thanks Comita d.d. and Elektro Ljubljana d.d. for supporting White Stork telemetry in Slovenia. David R. Barber is grateful to Wallace Research Foundation, The Acopian Family, Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, VulPro (South Africa), Clive Barlow, The Gambian Department of Parks and Wildlife Management, Endangered Wildlife Trust (South Africa). This work was financially supported by the US National Science Foundation, the Christensen Fund, National Geographic Society, the Whitley Fund for Nature, Faruk Yal{\c c}ın Zoo and KuzeyDoğa{\textquoteright}s donors, Turkey{\textquoteright}s Ministry of Forestry and Water Affairs General Directorate of Nature Conservation and National Parks, NorthStar Science and Technology, HawkWatch International, the University of Utah, and The Peregrine Fund. Gradimir Gradev acknowledges funding by Project LIFE for Lesser Kestrel, LIFE19 NAT/BG/001017. Hristo Peshev thanks funding provided by the projects; {\textquoteleft}Recovery of the Populations of Large European Vultures in Bulgaria{\textquoteright} (LIFE08 NAT/BG/000278), {\textquoteleft}Vultures back to LIFE - Bright Future for Black Vulture in Bulgaria{\textquoteright} (LIFE14 NAT/BG/000649) funded by the European Union and project {\textquoteleft}Saving the Balkans{\textquoteright} last vultures: introducing Vulture Safe Areas as a model for scavenger conservation in the Anthropocene{\textquoteright} funded by Whitley Fund for Nature. In{\^e}s Catry was funded by contract 2021.03224.CEECIND. Funding for the work on rough-legged buzzards in Norway was provided by the Norwegian Environment Agency and the Environment departments at the Office of the County Governors of Troms and Finnmark, Tr{\o}ndelag, Innlandet, Vestfold and Telemark, Oslo and Viken, Agder and Vestland. This study was funded by the Max-Planck Institute of Animal Behavior and the German Air and Space Administration (DLR). Partial funding was provided by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) under Germany's Excellence Strategy – EXC 2117–422037984. Tagging of common cranes in Estonia was supported by institutional research funding (IUT21-1) at the Estonian Ministry of Education and Research, by the Environmental Investment Centre Projects 2015–2017, and by Research Development Projects from Estonian University of Life Sciences. A significant proportion of the GPS birds provided by Ana Bermejo-Bermejo and Javier de la Puente were marked as part of the Migra programme developed by SEO/BirdLife between 2011 and 2021 and funded by Fundaci{\'o}n Iberdrola Espa{\~n}a. Funding was provided by Interreg POCTEFA Ecogyp (EFA 089/15). The telemetry of Montagu's Harrier in the Czech Republic was supported by the European Union under the Operational Program Environment, project No. CZ.05.4.27/0.0/0.0/19_130/0010743. Mansoor H. AlJahdhami thanks the Office for Conservation of the Environment, Diwan of Royal Court. Manuel Gal{\'a}n is grateful to Ministerio para la Transici{\'o}n Ecol{\'o}gica y Reto Demogr{\'a}fico. Marcin Tobolka thanks funding from National Science Centre (Poland), 2016/23/D/NZ8/01902. Māris Strazds acknowledges funding by Administration of Latvian Environmental Protection Fund, and the Latvian Ornithological Society. Martin Wikelski acknowledges partial funding by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) under Germany's ExcellenceStrategy – EXC 2117–422037984. Michael J. McGrady thanks the Environment Authority of Oman for issuance of permits and field support and the Environment Society of Oman for administrative and logistical support. Munir Z. Virani thanks the Band Foundation, The Peregrine Fund, Whitley Fund for Nature, National Geographic Society, Simon Thomsett, Narok County Government, Kenya Wildlife Service and Matira Safaris. Orr Spiegel acknowledges funding by the Binational Science Foundation (BSF) 822/2019 grant. Pauline L. Kamath thanks support from NSF-BSF Ecology and Evolution of Infectious Diseases (EEID) Grant 2015904; USDA—National Institute of Food and Agriculture Hatch Project Nos. ME021908 and ME022402 to PLK. Peter Palatitz was funded by LIFE11/NAT/HU/000926. ainer Raab thanks the support from LIFE EUROKITE project (LIFE18 NAT/AT/000048). They acknowledge funding through the WUR Knowledge Base Program: KB36 Biodiversity in a Nature-Inclusive Society (project number KB36-5200044844) - which is supported by the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality. Ran Nathan thanks the Minerva Centre for Movement Ecology and Grants BSF-255/2008, BSF-904/2015, DIP NA 846/1-1, GIF-999-66.8/2008, JNF-KKL 14-093-01-6, ISF 2525/16 to RN for their kind support. his work was supported by grant no. I-1465-413.13/2018 of the German-Israeli Foundation for Scientific Research and Development (GIF). Ron Efrat was supported by the Israeli Academy of Science's Adams Fellowship and the Ben-Gurion University's Negev Fellowship. Salim Javed would like to thank the Environment Agency-Abu Dhabi for their support. Simeon A. Marin thanks the Project Greater chance for Lesser Kestrel (Falco naumanni) in Bulgaria - Lesser Kestrel Recovery, LIFE11 NAT/BG/360. {\v S}imon Krej{\v c}{\'i} was supported by the University of Veterinary Sciences Brno grant no. IGA 204/2023/FVHE. Steffen Oppel and Volen Arkumarev highlight that their work was carried out in the framework of the LIFE projects “The Return of the Neophron” (LIFE10 NAT/BG/000152) and “Egyptian Vulture New LIFE” (LIFE16 NAT/BG/000874, www.LifeNeophron.eu) funded by the European Union and co-funded by the A. G. Leventis Foundation, MAVA Foundation, and the BirdLife GEF/UNDP Migratory Soaring Birds project. Steven R. Ewing would like to thank the private individuals and organisations that funded the RSPB's Hen Harrier tagging programme, particularly the European Commission's LIFE programme through the Hen Harrier LIFE project (LIFE13 NAT/UK/000258), Northern England Raptor Forum (NERF), Lothian and Borders Raptor Study Group, Lush Retail Limited, Natural Resources Wales, Scottish and Southern Energy and the Welsh Government. Tracking of Imperial eagle in Bulgaria was funded by the LIFE Program of the European Union under the project “Conservation of Imperial Eagle and Saker Falcon in key Natura 2000 sites in Bulgaria” (LIFE07 NAT/BG/000068). Tom{\'a}{\v s} Veselovsk{\'y} acknowledges support from the Pannon Eagle LIFE project (LIFE15/NAT/HU/000902). Tagging of short-toed eagles in Italy was funded by Parco Regionale Gallipoli Cognato e Piccole Dolomiti Lucane. Wayne M. Getz was funded by the National Science Foundation, Grant/Award Number: 1617982; United States-Israel Binational Science Foundation, Grant/Award Number: 904/2015. Rigas Tsiakiris is grateful to the FWFF-Fund for Wild Flora and Fauna (https://www.fwff.org/). Sonja Kr{\"u}ger would like to thank Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife and the Maloti Drakensberg Transfrontier project for their support. Pietro Serroni would like to thank GREFA for their support and collaboration throughout the reintroduction project, Ministero dell'Ambiente e della Sicurezza Energetica for funding the gps tracking activity, Dipartimento Ambiente - Regione Calabria for funding the reintroduction project. {\"U}lo V{\"a}li acknowledges support from the EC LIFE programme (project LIFE04NAT/EE/000072), Estonian Environmental Investments Centre (Projects No. 15432 and 15632), the Estonian Environmental Board, Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Project no. 79-2017) and the Estonian University of Life Sciences (Project No. P180271). Tracking of saker falcons in Slovakia was funded by the LIFE projects LIFE09 NAT/HU/000384 Conservation of Falco cherrug in NE Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia, and LIFE06 NAT/H/000096 Conservation of saker (Falco cherrug) in the Carpathian Basin.",

year = "2024",

month = may,

day = "1",

doi = "10.1016/j.biocon.2024.110525",

language = "English",

volume = "293",

journal = "Biological Conservation",

issn = "0006-3207",

publisher = "Elsevier",

}

Serratosa, J, Oppel, S, Rotics, S, Santangeli, A, Butchart, SHM, Cano-Alonso, LS, Tellería, JL, Kemp, R, Nicholas, A, Kalvāns, A, Galarza, A, Franco, AMA, Andreotti, A, Kirschel, ANG, Ngari, A, Soutullo, A, Bermejo-Bermejo, A, Botha, AJ, Ferri, A, Evangelidis, A, Cenerini, A, Stamenov, A, Hernández-Matías, A, Aradis, A, Grozdanov, AP, Rodríguez, B, Şekercioğlu, ÇH, Cerecedo-Iglesias, C, Kassara, C, Barboutis, C, Bracebridge, C, García-Ripollés, C, Kendall, CJ, Denac, D, Schabo, DG, Barber, DR, Popov, DV, Dobrev, DD, Mallia, E, Kmetova-Biro, E, Álvarez, E, Buechley, ER, Bragin, EA, Cordischi, F, Zengeya, FM, Monti, F, Mougeot, F, Tate, G, Stoyanov, G, Dell'Omo, G, Lucia, G, Gradev, G, Ceccolini, G, Friedemann, G, Bauer, HG, Kolberg, H, Peshev, H, Catry, I, Øien, IJ, Alanís, IC, Literák, I, Pokrovsky, I, Ojaste, I, Østnes, JE, de la Puente, J, Real, J, Guilherme, JL, González, JC, Fernández-García, JM, Gil, JA, Terraube, J, Poprach, K, Aghababyan, K, Klein, K, Bildstein, KL, Wolter, K, Janssens, K, Kittelberger, KD, Thompson, LJ, AlJahdhami, MH, Galán, M, Tobolka, M, Posillico, M, Cipollone, M, Gschweng, M, Strazds, M, Boorman, M, Zvidzai, M, Acácio, M, Romero, M, Wikelski, M, Schmidt, M, Sarà, M, McGrady, MJ, Dagys, M, Mackenzie, ML, Al Taq, M, Mgumba, MP, Virani, MZ, Kassinis, NI, Borgianni, N, Thie, N, Tsiopelas, N, Anglister, N, Farwig, N, Sapir, N, Kleven, O, Krone, O, Duriez, O, Spiegel, O, Al Nouri, O, López-López, P, Byholm, P, Kamath, PL, Mirski, P, Palatitz, P, Serroni, P, Raab, R, Buij, R, Žydelis, R, Nathan, R, Bowie, RCK, Tsiakiris, R, Hatfield, RS, Harel, R, Kroglund, RT, Efrat, R, Limiñana, R, Javed, S, Marinković, SP, Rösner, S, Pekarsky, S, Kapila, SR, Marin, SA, Krejčí, Š, Giokas, S, Tumanyan, S, Turjeman, S, Krüger, SC, Ewing, SR, Stoychev, S, Nikolov, SC, Qaneer, TE, Spatz, T, Hadjikyriakou, TG, Mueller, T, Katzner, TE, Aarvak, T, Veselovský, T, Nygård, T, Mellone, U, Väli, Ü, Sellis, U, Urios, V, Nemček, V, Arkumarev, V, Getz, WM, Fiedler, W, Van den Bossche, W, Lehnardt, Y & Jones, VR 2024, 'Tracking data highlight the importance of human-induced mortality for large migratory birds at a flyway scale', Biological Conservation, vol. 293, 110525. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2024.110525

TY - JOUR

T1 - Tracking data highlight the importance of human-induced mortality for large migratory birds at a flyway scale

AU - Serratosa, Juan

AU - Oppel, Steffen

AU - Rotics, Shay

AU - Santangeli, Andrea

AU - Butchart, Stuart H.M.

AU - Cano-Alonso, Luis S.

AU - Tellería, Jose Luis

AU - Kemp, Ryno

AU - Nicholas, Aaron

AU - Kalvāns, Aigars

AU - Galarza, Aitor

AU - Franco, Aldina M.A.

AU - Andreotti, Alessandro

AU - Kirschel, Alexander N.G.

AU - Ngari, Alex

AU - Soutullo, Alvaro

AU - Bermejo-Bermejo, Ana

AU - Botha, Andre J.

AU - Ferri, Andrea

AU - Evangelidis, Angelos

AU - Cenerini, Anna

AU - Stamenov, Anton

AU - Hernández-Matías, Antonio

AU - Aradis, Arianna

AU - Grozdanov, Atanas P.

AU - Rodríguez, Beneharo

AU - Şekercioğlu, Çağan H.

AU - Cerecedo-Iglesias, Catuxa

AU - Kassara, Christina

AU - Barboutis, Christos

AU - Bracebridge, Claire

AU - García-Ripollés, Clara

AU - Kendall, Corinne J.

AU - Denac, Damijan

AU - Schabo, Dana G.

AU - Barber, David R.

AU - Popov, Dimitar V.

AU - Dobrev, Dobromir D.

AU - Mallia, Egidio

AU - Kmetova-Biro, Elena

AU - Álvarez, Ernesto

AU - Buechley, Evan R.

AU - Bragin, Evgeny A.

AU - Cordischi, Fabrizio

AU - Zengeya, Fadzai M.

AU - Monti, Flavio

AU - Mougeot, Francois

AU - Tate, Gareth

AU - Stoyanov, Georgi

AU - Dell'Omo, Giacomo

AU - Lucia, Giuseppe

AU - Gradev, Gradimir

AU - Ceccolini, Guido

AU - Friedemann, Guilad

AU - Bauer, Hans Günther

AU - Kolberg, Holger

AU - Peshev, Hristo

AU - Catry, Inês

AU - Øien, Ingar J.

AU - Alanís, Isidoro Carbonell

AU - Literák, Ivan

AU - Pokrovsky, Ivan

AU - Ojaste, Ivar

AU - Østnes, Jan E.

AU - de la Puente, Javier

AU - Real, Joan

AU - Guilherme, João L.

AU - González, José C.

AU - Fernández-García, José M.

AU - Gil, Juan Antonio

AU - Terraube, Julien

AU - Poprach, Karel

AU - Aghababyan, Karen

AU - Klein, Katharina

AU - Bildstein, Keith L.

AU - Wolter, Kerri

AU - Janssens, Kjell

AU - Kittelberger, Kyle D.

AU - Thompson, Lindy J.

AU - AlJahdhami, Mansoor H.

AU - Galán, Manuel

AU - Tobolka, Marcin

AU - Posillico, Mario

AU - Cipollone, Mario

AU - Gschweng, Marion

AU - Strazds, Māris

AU - Boorman, Mark

AU - Zvidzai, Mark

AU - Acácio, Marta

AU - Romero, Marta

AU - Wikelski, Martin

AU - Schmidt, Matthias

AU - Sarà, Maurizio

AU - McGrady, Michael J.

AU - Dagys, Mindaugas

AU - Mackenzie, Monique L.

AU - Al Taq, Muna

AU - Mgumba, Msafiri P.

AU - Virani, Munir Z.

AU - Kassinis, Nicolaos I.

AU - Borgianni, Nicolò

AU - Thie, Nikki

AU - Tsiopelas, Nikos

AU - Anglister, Nili

AU - Farwig, Nina

AU - Sapir, Nir

AU - Kleven, Oddmund

AU - Krone, Oliver

AU - Duriez, Olivier

AU - Spiegel, Orr

AU - Al Nouri, Osama

AU - López-López, Pascual

AU - Byholm, Patrik

AU - Kamath, Pauline L.

AU - Mirski, Paweł

AU - Palatitz, Peter

AU - Serroni, Pietro

AU - Raab, Rainer

AU - Buij, Ralph

AU - Žydelis, Ramūnas

AU - Nathan, Ran

AU - Bowie, Rauri C.K.

AU - Tsiakiris, Rigas

AU - Hatfield, Richard Stratton

AU - Harel, Roi

AU - Kroglund, Rolf T.

AU - Efrat, Ron

AU - Limiñana, Ruben

AU - Javed, Salim

AU - Marinković, Saša P.

AU - Rösner, Sascha

AU - Pekarsky, Sasha

AU - Kapila, Shiv R.

AU - Marin, Simeon A.

AU - Krejčí, Šimon

AU - Giokas, Sinos

AU - Tumanyan, Siranush

AU - Turjeman, Sondra

AU - Krüger, Sonja C.

AU - Ewing, Steven R.

AU - Stoychev, Stoycho

AU - Nikolov, Stoyan C.

AU - Qaneer, Tareq E.

AU - Spatz, Theresa

AU - Hadjikyriakou, Thomas G.

AU - Mueller, Thomas

AU - Katzner, Todd E.

AU - Aarvak, Tomas

AU - Veselovský, Tomáš

AU - Nygård, Torgeir

AU - Mellone, Ugo

AU - Väli, Ülo

AU - Sellis, Urmas

AU - Urios, Vicente

AU - Nemček, Vladimír

AU - Arkumarev, Volen

AU - Getz, Wayne M.

AU - Fiedler, Wolfgang

AU - Van den Bossche, Willem

AU - Lehnardt, Yael

AU - Jones, Victoria R.

N1 - Funding: Aldina M. A. Franco's work was financed by the FEDER Funds through the Operational Competitiveness Factors Program — COMPETE and by National Funds through FCT – Foundation for Science and Technology within the scope of the project Birds on the move ‘POCI-01-0145-FEDER-028176’, by InBIO (UID/BIA/50027/2013 and POCI-01-0145-FEDER-006821), and by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), via the EnvEast DTP, and NERC and Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), via the NEXUSS CDT Training in the Smart and Autonomous Observation of the Environment. Funding for the development of the GPS tracking devices was provided by NERC (NE/K006312), Norwich Research Park Translational Fund, University of East Anglia Innovation Funds and Earth and Life Systems Alliance funds. Andrea Santangeli acknowledges support from the European Commission through the Horizon 2020 Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions individual fellowships (Grant no. 101027534). Alessandro Andreotti thanks for the funding received by the European Commission through the Egyptian vulture LIFE project “Measures for the conservation of the Egyptian vulture in Italy and in the Canary Islands” (LIFE16/NAT/IT/000659) and the support provided by Carabinieri Forestali, Stazione Ornitologica Calabrese and De Rerum Natura. Tagging and tracking of Eleonora's falcons from Greece were conducted in the framework of the projects ‘LIFE13 NAT/GR/000909 Conservation measures to assist the adaptation of Falco eleonorae to climate change’ with the financial support of the European Union LIFE Instrument and the Green Fund and ‘Survey and Conservation of Seabirds in Greece’ funded by A.G. Leventis foundation. Flavio Monti acknowledges support from “Progetto Falco pescatore" (and project collaborators) and wants to thank the Tuscan Archipelago National Park, the Maremma Regional Park, the Diaccia Botrona Natural Reserve, the WWF Orbetello Lagoon Natural Reserve and the WWF Orti-Bottagone Marsh Natural Reserve, under the Tuscany Region administration, in Italy. Joan Real and Antonio Hernández-Matías are deeply grateful to Grup de Naturalistes d'Osona-ICHN, Grup d'Anellament de Calldetenes-Osona (GACO), Servei de Biodiversitat de la Generalitat de Catalunya, Ferrovial S.A., Consoci per a la Gestió de Residus Urbans d'Osona, Ministerio de Transición ecológica of Spain (V. Matarranz and A. Díaz). Funding was provided by project PID2020-117909RBI00 funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 from the National Plan of the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities and Red Eléctrica de España SAU, Fundació Catalunya-La Pedrera and Diputación de Barcelona. Joao L. Guilherme was funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions grant agreement no. 766417. This research was supported by generous donors, including B. Bahar, S. İşmen, Ö. Külahçıoğlu, B. Över, B. Özkan, A. Peterson, E. Özgür, S. Reyent, C. Sertoğlu, B. Watkins, the Sigrid Rausing Trust and the Whitley Fund. Ç.H·S is grateful to H. Batubay Özkan and Barbara Watkins for their support of the Biodiversity and Conservation Ecology Lab at the University of Utah School of Biological Sciences. orinne J. Kendall and collaborators are very grateful for the donor support provided by Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), AZA SAFE (Saving Animals From Extinction), Dallas Zoo, Disney Conservation Fund, Leiden Conservation Foundation, National Geographic Society, Taronga Conservation Society Australia, and The Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund. Damijan Denac thanks Comita d.d. and Elektro Ljubljana d.d. for supporting White Stork telemetry in Slovenia. David R. Barber is grateful to Wallace Research Foundation, The Acopian Family, Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, VulPro (South Africa), Clive Barlow, The Gambian Department of Parks and Wildlife Management, Endangered Wildlife Trust (South Africa). This work was financially supported by the US National Science Foundation, the Christensen Fund, National Geographic Society, the Whitley Fund for Nature, Faruk Yalçın Zoo and KuzeyDoğa’s donors, Turkey’s Ministry of Forestry and Water Affairs General Directorate of Nature Conservation and National Parks, NorthStar Science and Technology, HawkWatch International, the University of Utah, and The Peregrine Fund. Gradimir Gradev acknowledges funding by Project LIFE for Lesser Kestrel, LIFE19 NAT/BG/001017. Hristo Peshev thanks funding provided by the projects; ‘Recovery of the Populations of Large European Vultures in Bulgaria’ (LIFE08 NAT/BG/000278), ‘Vultures back to LIFE - Bright Future for Black Vulture in Bulgaria’ (LIFE14 NAT/BG/000649) funded by the European Union and project ‘Saving the Balkans’ last vultures: introducing Vulture Safe Areas as a model for scavenger conservation in the Anthropocene’ funded by Whitley Fund for Nature. Inês Catry was funded by contract 2021.03224.CEECIND. Funding for the work on rough-legged buzzards in Norway was provided by the Norwegian Environment Agency and the Environment departments at the Office of the County Governors of Troms and Finnmark, Trøndelag, Innlandet, Vestfold and Telemark, Oslo and Viken, Agder and Vestland. This study was funded by the Max-Planck Institute of Animal Behavior and the German Air and Space Administration (DLR). Partial funding was provided by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) under Germany's Excellence Strategy – EXC 2117–422037984. Tagging of common cranes in Estonia was supported by institutional research funding (IUT21-1) at the Estonian Ministry of Education and Research, by the Environmental Investment Centre Projects 2015–2017, and by Research Development Projects from Estonian University of Life Sciences. A significant proportion of the GPS birds provided by Ana Bermejo-Bermejo and Javier de la Puente were marked as part of the Migra programme developed by SEO/BirdLife between 2011 and 2021 and funded by Fundación Iberdrola España. Funding was provided by Interreg POCTEFA Ecogyp (EFA 089/15). The telemetry of Montagu's Harrier in the Czech Republic was supported by the European Union under the Operational Program Environment, project No. CZ.05.4.27/0.0/0.0/19_130/0010743. Mansoor H. AlJahdhami thanks the Office for Conservation of the Environment, Diwan of Royal Court. Manuel Galán is grateful to Ministerio para la Transición Ecológica y Reto Demográfico. Marcin Tobolka thanks funding from National Science Centre (Poland), 2016/23/D/NZ8/01902. Māris Strazds acknowledges funding by Administration of Latvian Environmental Protection Fund, and the Latvian Ornithological Society. Martin Wikelski acknowledges partial funding by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) under Germany's ExcellenceStrategy – EXC 2117–422037984. Michael J. McGrady thanks the Environment Authority of Oman for issuance of permits and field support and the Environment Society of Oman for administrative and logistical support. Munir Z. Virani thanks the Band Foundation, The Peregrine Fund, Whitley Fund for Nature, National Geographic Society, Simon Thomsett, Narok County Government, Kenya Wildlife Service and Matira Safaris. Orr Spiegel acknowledges funding by the Binational Science Foundation (BSF) 822/2019 grant. Pauline L. Kamath thanks support from NSF-BSF Ecology and Evolution of Infectious Diseases (EEID) Grant 2015904; USDA—National Institute of Food and Agriculture Hatch Project Nos. ME021908 and ME022402 to PLK. Peter Palatitz was funded by LIFE11/NAT/HU/000926. ainer Raab thanks the support from LIFE EUROKITE project (LIFE18 NAT/AT/000048). They acknowledge funding through the WUR Knowledge Base Program: KB36 Biodiversity in a Nature-Inclusive Society (project number KB36-5200044844) - which is supported by the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality. Ran Nathan thanks the Minerva Centre for Movement Ecology and Grants BSF-255/2008, BSF-904/2015, DIP NA 846/1-1, GIF-999-66.8/2008, JNF-KKL 14-093-01-6, ISF 2525/16 to RN for their kind support. his work was supported by grant no. I-1465-413.13/2018 of the German-Israeli Foundation for Scientific Research and Development (GIF). Ron Efrat was supported by the Israeli Academy of Science's Adams Fellowship and the Ben-Gurion University's Negev Fellowship. Salim Javed would like to thank the Environment Agency-Abu Dhabi for their support. Simeon A. Marin thanks the Project Greater chance for Lesser Kestrel (Falco naumanni) in Bulgaria - Lesser Kestrel Recovery, LIFE11 NAT/BG/360. Šimon Krejčí was supported by the University of Veterinary Sciences Brno grant no. IGA 204/2023/FVHE. Steffen Oppel and Volen Arkumarev highlight that their work was carried out in the framework of the LIFE projects “The Return of the Neophron” (LIFE10 NAT/BG/000152) and “Egyptian Vulture New LIFE” (LIFE16 NAT/BG/000874, www.LifeNeophron.eu) funded by the European Union and co-funded by the A. G. Leventis Foundation, MAVA Foundation, and the BirdLife GEF/UNDP Migratory Soaring Birds project. Steven R. Ewing would like to thank the private individuals and organisations that funded the RSPB's Hen Harrier tagging programme, particularly the European Commission's LIFE programme through the Hen Harrier LIFE project (LIFE13 NAT/UK/000258), Northern England Raptor Forum (NERF), Lothian and Borders Raptor Study Group, Lush Retail Limited, Natural Resources Wales, Scottish and Southern Energy and the Welsh Government. Tracking of Imperial eagle in Bulgaria was funded by the LIFE Program of the European Union under the project “Conservation of Imperial Eagle and Saker Falcon in key Natura 2000 sites in Bulgaria” (LIFE07 NAT/BG/000068). Tomáš Veselovský acknowledges support from the Pannon Eagle LIFE project (LIFE15/NAT/HU/000902). Tagging of short-toed eagles in Italy was funded by Parco Regionale Gallipoli Cognato e Piccole Dolomiti Lucane. Wayne M. Getz was funded by the National Science Foundation, Grant/Award Number: 1617982; United States-Israel Binational Science Foundation, Grant/Award Number: 904/2015. Rigas Tsiakiris is grateful to the FWFF-Fund for Wild Flora and Fauna (https://www.fwff.org/). Sonja Krüger would like to thank Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife and the Maloti Drakensberg Transfrontier project for their support. Pietro Serroni would like to thank GREFA for their support and collaboration throughout the reintroduction project, Ministero dell'Ambiente e della Sicurezza Energetica for funding the gps tracking activity, Dipartimento Ambiente - Regione Calabria for funding the reintroduction project. Ülo Väli acknowledges support from the EC LIFE programme (project LIFE04NAT/EE/000072), Estonian Environmental Investments Centre (Projects No. 15432 and 15632), the Estonian Environmental Board, Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Project no. 79-2017) and the Estonian University of Life Sciences (Project No. P180271). Tracking of saker falcons in Slovakia was funded by the LIFE projects LIFE09 NAT/HU/000384 Conservation of Falco cherrug in NE Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia, and LIFE06 NAT/H/000096 Conservation of saker (Falco cherrug) in the Carpathian Basin.

PY - 2024/5/1

Y1 - 2024/5/1

N2 - Human-induced direct mortality affects huge numbers of birds each year, threatening hundreds of species worldwide. Tracking technologies can be an important tool to investigate temporal and spatial patterns of bird mortality as well as their drivers. We compiled 1704 mortality records from tracking studies across the African-Eurasian flyway for 45 species, including raptors, storks, and cranes, covering the period from 2003 to 2021. Our results show a higher frequency of human-induced causes of mortality than natural causes across taxonomic groups, geographical areas, and age classes. Moreover, we found that the frequency of human-induced mortality remained stable over the study period. From the human-induced mortality events with a known cause (n = 637), three main causes were identified: electrocution (40.5 %), illegal killing (21.7 %), and poisoning (16.3 %). Additionally, combined energy infrastructure-related mortality (i.e., electrocution, power line collision, and wind-farm collision) represented 49 % of all human-induced mortality events. Using a random forest model, the main predictors of human-induced mortality were found to be taxonomic group, geographic location (latitude and longitude), and human footprint index value at the location of mortality. Despite conservation efforts, human drivers of bird mortality in the African-Eurasian flyway do not appear to have declined over the last 15 years for the studied group of species. Results suggest that stronger conservation actions to address these threats across the flyway can reduce their impacts on species. In particular, projected future development of energy infrastructure is a representative example where application of planning, operation, and mitigation measures can enhance bird conservation.

AB - Human-induced direct mortality affects huge numbers of birds each year, threatening hundreds of species worldwide. Tracking technologies can be an important tool to investigate temporal and spatial patterns of bird mortality as well as their drivers. We compiled 1704 mortality records from tracking studies across the African-Eurasian flyway for 45 species, including raptors, storks, and cranes, covering the period from 2003 to 2021. Our results show a higher frequency of human-induced causes of mortality than natural causes across taxonomic groups, geographical areas, and age classes. Moreover, we found that the frequency of human-induced mortality remained stable over the study period. From the human-induced mortality events with a known cause (n = 637), three main causes were identified: electrocution (40.5 %), illegal killing (21.7 %), and poisoning (16.3 %). Additionally, combined energy infrastructure-related mortality (i.e., electrocution, power line collision, and wind-farm collision) represented 49 % of all human-induced mortality events. Using a random forest model, the main predictors of human-induced mortality were found to be taxonomic group, geographic location (latitude and longitude), and human footprint index value at the location of mortality. Despite conservation efforts, human drivers of bird mortality in the African-Eurasian flyway do not appear to have declined over the last 15 years for the studied group of species. Results suggest that stronger conservation actions to address these threats across the flyway can reduce their impacts on species. In particular, projected future development of energy infrastructure is a representative example where application of planning, operation, and mitigation measures can enhance bird conservation.

KW - Bird conservation

KW - Energy infrastructure

KW - Illegal killing

KW - Mortality

KW - Poisoning

KW - Renewable energy

KW - Tracking technologies

U2 - 10.1016/j.biocon.2024.110525

DO - 10.1016/j.biocon.2024.110525

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:85189815544

SN - 0006-3207

VL - 293

JO - Biological Conservation

JF - Biological Conservation

M1 - 110525

ER -

Tracking data highlight the importance of human-induced mortality for large migratory birds at a flyway scale

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