Re-introduction of the Saker Falcon (Falco cherrug) in Bulgaria - preliminary results from the ongoing establishment phase by 2020

By

Lazarova, Ivanka
Petrov, Rusko
Andonova, Yana
Klisurov, Ivaylo
Dixon, Andrew

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2021-04-20

Original Publication

Biodiversity data journal

Volume

9

Pages

1--15

Subjects

breeding performance , captive breeding , captive breeding , Falco cherrug , hacking , post-fledging dependence period , Saker Falcon

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

Sofia Pensoft Publishers [2013]-

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.9.e63729
eLocator: e63729

 

Abstract

Considered extinct as breeding species in the early 2000s, the Saker Falcon was recovered when the first active nest from the new history of the species in Bulgaria was discovered in 2018, formed of two birds that were re-introduced back in 2015. Currently, there is only one confirmed wild breeding pair in the country - the male from 2015 with a female changed in 2020, released again as a part of the programme, in 2016. This is a report on the preliminary results and analysis of the ongoing establishment phase of the re-introduction of the Saker Falcon (Falco cherrug) in Bulgaria - first ever performed for this species in the country and globally. The period studied is 2015-2020. Following the re-introduction activities started in 2011, the current phase is defined by standardised methodology and a unified approach. Analysed and presented are methods for captive breeding and hacking, the breeding performance of the falcons, the number of released individuals, data from the post-fledging dependence period and a model of population growth.