Black stork nesting camera in Jõgeva County 2022
https://www.looduskalender.ee/n/node/6527 -
14.04.2022, Urmas Sellis, Triin Leetmaa
big thank to our Madli who is Estonian for translation
This year, the black stork's nests have two cameras in Estonia, one in Karula National Park and the other in Jõgeva County. We are watching the nest of Jõgeva County (“Black Stork2”) for the second year.
The breeding territory of black storks in Jõgeva County has been known since the early 1990s, when it was a successful breeding ground for several years. Among other things, the star of Estonia's first nesting camera, the black stork Tooni, also nested there. The camera was already in Tooni's new nest, not the nest currently visible in the camera. After Tooni left, this nest remained uninhabited for fifteen years (as far as we know). During the monitoring of the black stork in 2020, it became clear that the storks have re-used the old artificial nest and successfully nested on the half-decayed nest. Considering the very bad situation of the black stork in Estonia, the resettlement of the old place was a big surprise. In the early spring of 2021, instead of a decaying nest, we built a new nest base and installed a camera with an infrared sensor on it, which allowed us to monitor what was happening in the nest even at night.
The owner of the nest, named Jan, arrived at the nest for the first time in 2021 on the late evening of April 10. For a long time the male was alone, because the female Janika did not arrive until May 2. Due to the late arrival of the female bird, the onset of nesting was almost a month later than in black storks usual. Therefore, the three chicks fledged only until the end of August. Since the old birds were already migrating at that time, we took fish to the nestlings for extra food. Two of the three chicks died near the nest. The third, aptly named Julge (Brave), initially flew west toward Gotland. On the high seas, his forces subsided and he landed on a tanker headed for Primorsk, on which he sailed into the vicinity of Hiiumaa. From there, Julge headed south again. His satellite signal disappeared near Paris (read about Julge's adventures on a longer travel map). This year, the old birds arrived at the nest on April 8 and 11. They don't have rings. Whether these are the same birds that nested here last year still needs some research.
The future of Estonian black storks is dark. The population has been declining for a long time, and according to the latest estimates, only 50-70 pairs of black storks nest in Estonia. A large proportion of unpaired birds have been observed in the population for several years, and it is likely that there is a shortage of females. So far no clear reason is known why this is the case. The proportion of both sexes among nestlings is approximately equal. Thus, the daughters disappear before nesting or move elsewhere. In addition, high levels of mercury have been found in the blood of nesting birds, leading to changes in bird behavior, reduced fertility and a weakened immune system (see also here).
At the nest, we use an infrared camera, which allows the image to be transmitted even in the dark. With a black stork, you don't have to camouflage the camera much. So far, we haven't noticed that the camera is disturbing the nesting individuals much. Old birds rather sometimes wanted to lift the camera into the nest as a misplaced nest material. The camera is transmitted via the mobile Internet. The image then moves to the server of the Estonian Fund for Nature, where the video is being prepared and saved for YouTube streaming. Live stream is broadcasted for the viewers live through the Eagle Club YouTube channel. We recommend watching the Kotkaklubi channel in case the web address of the broadcast changes due to technical reasons. All other Estonian eagle and black stork nest cameras and a capercaellie lekking site camera can also be found on the Eagle Club channel. The use of the transfer from the nest for non-commercial purposes elsewhere is not prohibited, but please let us know if possible (send a message to urmas (at) kotkas.ee)
Sponsors are welcome at each camera, as some components need to be replaced each year. We do not have any project support for this. The Environmental Investment Center has supported the installation, dismantling and maintenance of cameras.
Black Stork Nest Camera Team and Supporters:
Eagle Club - related to the nest, camera installation and information sharing
Beta-Group - camera testing and setup, microphone construction, technical support
Looduskalender - Camera Forum on the Web
Estonian Fund for Nature - server room
Environmental Investment Center - financial support for deveryday activities and services
Several private donors - to cover unexpected and expected hardware costs
Thousands of observers - who are the most important, because otherwise the camera would not make much sense!
