Yellow-breasted Bunting ringed in 2015 and re-located at Muraviovka Park in 2016 © Arend Heim |
Rapidly declining population trends have recently been found for
Yellow-breasted Bunting Emberiza aureola (see here) and Rustic
Bunting E. rustica (see here), but our knowledge about their
migration routes and survival rates is still very limited.
To address
this, a colour-ring study was started at Muraviovka Park in Far East
Russia. Volunteers of the Amur Bird Project equipped the first
Yellow-breasted Buntings with individual combinations during breeding
season in 2015. Happily, three out of seven males safely returned to
their breeding grounds in 2016. To compare survival rates among
sympatric breeding species, we decided to include Black-faced
Bunting E. spodocephala, Chestnut-eared Bunting
E. fucata, Common Reed Bunting E. schoeniclus and
Japanese Reed Bunting E. yessoensis in our study.
During spring and summer 2016, we managed to equip almost 200
buntings with colourful ring combinations at our study site on the
Amur river.
Now, migration has begun for most of these species, and our
colour-ringed buntings might occur anywhere in East Asia. Please scan
all bunting flocks carefully! All birds have one colour-ring above
the metal ring of the Moscow ringing centre on one leg, and two
colour-rings on the second leg. Used colours are black, blue, green,
orange, purple, red, white and yellow. If possible, take pictures of
buntings which seem to wear a ring. We had to find out that it can be
hard to determine the colour in the field, however it is very easy on
the computer screen, even if the photo is anything but perfect.
Please let us know if you come across a colour-ringed bird, and help
to shed light on the yet unknown migration routes of this beautiful
birds! We will send you in return all information about the bird.
Colour-ringed Chestnut-eared, Black-faced, Common Reed and Japanese Reed Bunting - do you know, who is who? © Arend & Wieland Heim |
Um Informationen zu den bisher unbekannten Zugwegen und den jährlichen Überlebensraten bedrohter Ammerarten zu bekommen, wurde im Frühjahr 2015 mit einem Farbberingungsprojekt begonnen. Das Amur Bird Project Team konnte im ersten Jahr sieben männliche Weidenammern im Muraviovka Park in Fern Ost Russland beringen, von denen drei im nächsten Jahr zurückkehrten. Seit 2016 werden auch Bandammer, Mandschurenammer, Maskenammer und Rohrammer mit individuellen Farbringkombinationen versehen. Die fast 200 markierten Ammern müssten sich nun auf ihrem Herbstzug befinden, und könnten überall in Ostasien auftauchen. Hiermit möchte ich dazu aufrufen, alle Ammertrupps der oben genannten Arten mal ganz genau unter die Lupe zu nehmen - vielleicht gelingt ja eine Ablesung?
//Wieland