First tracks 2016....

 

Hi There backers,

Sorry for the long absence, but I have just returned after an extended field visit to the Houtman Abrolhos tracking those lovely Lesser Noddies with the new PathTrack micro GPS units.

The field season is a good one, the first in nearly a decade, with nearly all our nest sites occupied by breeding birds. 

There are two images I have attached, the first shows me releasing a Lesser Noddy after attaching one of the GPS units. You can see the colour band to help locate the bird later, and all of the field gear.  The trees in the background are the only species this seabird nests in, the Grey Mangrove.

The second is the first three tracks, each bird colour coded.  The tracks show us that Lesser Noddies feed quite a ways from their nest site on Pelsaert Island.  One bird (the red one) tracked 60km west of the islands, that's 120km off of the coast.  While the yellow bird flew 80km south in search of food.  Our third bird had two foraging trips, because she was busy feeding a hungry chick back at the nest.  While these are just interim results, we are happy to share that we successfully deployed the GPS on over 30 individuals, recovering all the GPS units.  10 days after retrieving the GPS, all the birds followed were still happily nesting.  A great result for us and the birds!

Thanks again!

Chris