Egyptian Vulture Research
Project Overview:
In the summer of 2012, 3 Egyptian vultures (Neophron percnopterus) were trapped in Eastern Turkey by personnel of Sekercioglu's nonprofit organization KuzeyDoga. The 3 birds were fitted with satellite transmitters that allow us to monitor the movement of these birds remotely, by simply downloading location points on the internet.
In the past months, we have been receiving fascinating information on the movement of these birds as they have left their breeding grounds in Turkey and headed south in their fall migration. To date, they have traveled amazing distances and have visited numerous countries, including, Turkey, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Yemen.
The Egyptian vulture is an endangered species and has undergone extremely rapid population declines over the past several decades throughout its range. These movement data will provide crucial information about the behavior, habitat use, and migratory routes of this species in a region of the world where they have been very little studied. We hope that this study will bring awareness to the exceptional nature of the Egyptian vulture and will provide clues regarding how best to conserve their populations.
We will be frequently updating this website with new maps and information regarding the movement of these three birds. Please stay tuned and check back regularly for the most up to date information…
