Post-fledging movements of cinereous Vultures Aegypius monachus in Turkey revealed by GPS telemetry

摘要

We studied the movements, home ranges and roost site preferences of three first-year Cinereous Vultures Aegypius monachus after they fledged at the Türkmenbaba Mountains, Eskiehir, western Turkey. We captured chicks at the nest in 2009 and 2010 and fitted them with GPS-GSM transmitters. After fledging, we received a total of 993 locations from all birds during 105-148 days of tracking. Tracked birds initially used small foraging areas, covering a mean 90% kernel home range of 356 ±134 SE km~2, and on average moved <10 km per day. As they started to migrate, daily movements increased to 59.3-120.3 km on average and took place largely during midday. Birds preferred to roost at sites with higher altitude, steeper slope and more wooded land. Our data suggest that first year birds from Turkey disperse south in October and November to desert habitats in middle latitude Arabia, and may cover up to 2765 km during migration.