Robins fly over 3,000 km to Malta
Two robins have flown a total of over 3,000 kilometres to reach Malta in what has been described as an amazing feat.
One of the birds, which weighs half as much as a packet of crisps, came all the way from Russia, flying an incredible distance of 2,200 km. The other migrated here from the Czech Republic in a 1,100 km flight. Both made it in just a matter of weeks.
The birds, which were caught for documentation in the last week of October, were ringed in the Czech Republic and Russia one month and one-and-a-half months ago respectively by Euring, a European bird conservation group.
The head of BirdLife Malta's ringing scheme, Mark Gauci, said: "This is an amazing feat for a 13-gram bird that must face the full power of the elements on an exhausting migratory journey.
"Scientific records show the importance of Malta as one of the main migration routes taken by various bird species. It also highlights the importance of the island as a wintering ground for these species."
The two birds were spotted by BirdLife's ringers and were released back into the wild following scientific measurements.
Europe's birds reproduce during spring when the weather is good and food is abundant. They migrate south to the Mediterranean and Africa during autumn as the weather gets colder and food becomes scarcer.
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V Falzon
Nov 28th 2009, 19:55
@ Edward Zammit "Do BLM have the right permits and authorizations to carry out these ringings ?"
Yes, all the necessary police licenses and authorisation. Incidentally, not just anyone in BirdLife can ring birds, you know: currently there are just over a dozen dedicated persons doing this work (unpaid, by the way) with years and even decades of experience in handling birds, and each are separately licensed to ring birds. Several young enthusiasts do take up training, but very few of them have the necessary time (= years) and stamina to make the grade and qualify as ringers. BirdLife takes ringing very seriously because ringers have the life of birds in their hands, literally, even if for a few minutes.
And unlike hunters, BirdLife values the life of every single bird, however much it may be of "least concern" to some.
Edward Zammit
Nov 27th 2009, 23:09
Do BLM have the right permits and authorizations to carry out these ringings ? Do they put out the number of birds killed or maimed by the nets they use ? Certainly no unless they start telling the truth and doing things the way that they should be, they're just attention seekers trying to depict people in falsities.
V Falzon
Nov 27th 2009, 21:45
@ Mark Mifsud Bonnici. "They have been doing this since God decided to create them."
Another tale from My Big Book of Animal Fairy Tales! For your information, birds didn't always migrate. Science explains that following the last Ice Age, gradual changes in climate slowly altered the habitats and forced birds to make increasingly longer journeys. For more detail, read a book!
V Falzon
Nov 27th 2009, 21:29
@ Mark Mifsud Bonnici. "in reality all birds migrate over great distances"
Really! And you got that fact from which Noddyland book?
V Falzon
Nov 27th 2009, 21:26
@ David Borg Cardona. "Seeing a robin in Malta is no big miracle mind you.
However common they are and however often they make their journey, robins and other migratory birds will never cease to amaze any nature lover. If you have lost that sense of wonder, well it's your sad loss. Mind you, I'm not surprised, considering you usually see birds down the barrel of your shotgun.
V Falzon
Nov 27th 2009, 21:20
@ Mark Mifsud Bonnici. "Why all the fuss about two robins reaching Malta from Russia and the Czech Republic?"
I'll tell you why all the fuss. The fuss about two robins from Russia and the Czech is not because Russian and Czech robins are rare - hundreds of them probably pass over Malta every autumn and spring. The fuss is that it is very unusual that we get to know with certainty that they are coming from there. It is thanks to scientific ringing that we sometimes narrow down the route they take and unravel some more of the birds' secrets.
V Falzon
Nov 27th 2009, 21:01
@ Andrew Gatt: "why are we never given facts and figures about the species and number of birds ringed in Malta?"
Reports, summaries, lists of species and numbers of birds ringed are published from time to time in BirdLife's journals, and they are available to the public. So before you hasten to blurt out your accusations, check the facts, will you? It makes for credibility, you know.
Cecil R. Serge
Nov 27th 2009, 18:25
Hopefully they will not be shot enroute.
Miriam Bittigieg
Nov 27th 2009, 18:19
Birds are ment to fly freely and not locked up in a tiny wooden cage thats my friends is barbaric and cruel. even for canaries, budgies and all any other bird of a feather, wish some people grow up not only on the islands but also other parts of the world.
kevin francica
Nov 27th 2009, 17:59
It really is "an amazing feat for a 13-gram bird that must face the full power of the elements on an exhausting migratory journey", especially when you consider that it had the extra weight of the ring. Even if the ring weighs milligrams it is still a considerable weight when compares to its bodyweight!! Can Birdlife Malta quote which scientific studies "show the importance of Malta as one of the main migration routes taken by various bird species".
Andrew Gatt
Nov 27th 2009, 16:49
@ I Balzan......the closest migratory route is 150km away, from Sicily to Tunisia. This is a FACT, my friend. Check it out! And I'm pleased to note your comment stating that Malta is a resting place for thousands of birds. That's more like it, not the MILLIONS and MILLIONS of migrating and breeding birds that Birdlife bleat on about.
@ A Attard...before waxing sooo lyrical......you may or may not know that, out of over 350 bird species recorded, we LEGALLY hunt just 32!! That's 10% for the pot, 90% for the birdwatchers. Seems pretty fair to me.
MARK MIFSUD BONNICI
Nov 27th 2009, 15:32
Mr. Simmons
What you saw is illegal and has been for many years. The capture and possession of robins is an offence, your reporting what you claim to have seen would be worth much more then your speculating about it.
I Balzan
Nov 27th 2009, 15:12
@ Andrew Gatt
Malta is on a very important migration route since we are in the middle of the mediterranean. The large variety of species which can be seen around the islands is enough proof. Maybe we don't get the impressive numbers seen at the bosphorus or gibralter however Malta is still used as a resting place for thousands of birds. And besides, if you claim that we are not on a main migration route, what are the 15,000+ hunters and trappers catching?
Great work BLM for this very interesting info. and keep it up.
A Attard
Nov 27th 2009, 15:07
Andrew Gatt: Whether Malta is a main or a secondary migration route is immaterial and does not deter from the wondrous nature of bird migration. These awsome creatures deserve safety and protection from those idiots who think that the skies belong to them alone and thus feel justified in wreaking havoc with nature to the detriment of the rest of us who want to enjoy it.
David Borg Cardona
Nov 27th 2009, 12:51
@ Mr BJ Simmons..
Seeing a robin in Malta is no big miracle mind you. The countryside is full of them at the moment.. and they all practically migrate from more or less the same countries.. So much for this "amazing feat" as described by BLM !!!
Now.. since you are one of the first persons to express yourself in the usual patronizing anti hunting tones.. did you report the person keeping the robin. I guess you know this is illegal or is it a case of only seeing illegalities where and when you want to see them.
@ BLM...
Please do not make such a big deal out of this. You try and make us believe the "main migratory" fairy tale again. The ECJ has flushed your fantasies down the so called drain. Ohhh yes what a coincidence.. you issued a report about 2 robins (these are not the first 2 you ringed .. right ?? ) just a few days after the FKNK council was acquitted of illegal bird ringing. Birdlife Malta (is it Malta after all ??) your dirty tactics are blatantly backfiring every time. Guess you have run out of slimey ideas now..
MARK MIFSUD BONNICI
Nov 27th 2009, 12:49
Why all the fuss about two robins reaching Malta from Russia and the Czech Republic? It might seem an amazing feat but in reality all birds migrate over great distances. It is a natural process in their process of survival.
Are Birdlife trying to impress us with such "news". All birds reaching Malta or any other location in their wintering area travel great distances. They have been doing this since God decided to create them. Their return journey in spring is no less strenuous but quite normal for any bird.
What the head of BirdLife Malta's ringing scheme, Mark Gauci, considers to be an "amazing feat" is in fact a twice yearly routine for all birds.
"Scientific records show the importance of Malta as one of the main migration routes taken by various bird species. It also highlights the importance of the island as a wintering ground for these species." Can Mark Gauci give us comparisons with other countries to substantiate his claim. All countries can boast of scientific studies far more plentiful than those of tiny Malta yet none claim special "importance". One wonders what Birdlife are trying to achieve by stating such nonsense.
Mr B J Simmons
Nov 27th 2009, 11:21
I have seen a robin in Malta.
Sadly it was in a tiny cage in a woodworking factory and was terrified when anyone went near it. Everything was thick in sawdust.
Andrew Gatt
Nov 27th 2009, 10:26
Nature certainly is amazing!
But please cut out the "main migration route" fantasy once and for all, will you? The recent ECJ ruling has put Birdlife's fictitious claim solidly where it belongs - in their fertile imagination!
And by the way, why are we never given facts and figures about the species and number of birds ringed in Malta? Ring recoveries? Mortality rates? We certainly get enough anti-hunting flak and reports and summaries and fingerpointing but never seem to get much about.... errrrr......birds?!!?
William P Flynn
Nov 27th 2009, 10:02
On a recent trip to Antarctica, I was awed by such tales as we were guided by a famous British ornithologist.
He explained how an albatross knows precisely where it is at every moment of its existence and how little energy it expends floating over the air turbulence generated by the wave action.
Birds that come to roost in the islands around Antarctica know precisely where to return to the nearest few square centimetres. How do they know exactly where their spot is?
Another tiny bird flies all the way from Siberia to New Zealand. They weigh seven to the ounce. Yet they travel thousands of kilometres knowing where a certain crustacean colony hatches billions of tiny crabs for its aviation fuel. At another stop it would be a certain seed and so on. It uses star navigation.
A homing pigeon is taken from the Lake District in England in a covered cage to Barcelona. When let out it somehow calculates the position of the sun and coordinates it with its inbuilt GPS. It flies away until the angle is just so and it's back home.
Birds don't belong in cages or stuffed on display in cabinets.