Karula National Park (Karl II and Kaia)

[marika.solo]

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Must toonekurg - Black Stork Nest in Karula

documenting the life on streamed black stork nest of Karl II + Kaia in Karula National Park
(see also our FB page https://www.facebook.com/groups/blackstork.ciconianigra)

the video transmission from the nest is streaming in Youtube:


If disturbances in the stream happen, then the broadcast is restarted, working on a new link. You can always look up the new link from the Kotkaklubi YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/Kotkaklubi

SEASON 2023

male KARL II - ring nr 716C
- spring migration thread: viewtopic.php?p=11271#p11271 (autumn migration thread viewtopic.php?p=8443#p8443)
female KAIA- ring nr 718U
- spring migration thread: viewtopic.php?p=11272#p11272 (autumn migration thread viewtopic.php?p=8130#p8130)

streaming started: 11.04.2023

ARRIVALs
- male KARL II: 12.04.2023 at 12.15.32
viewtopic.php?p=12892#p12892 + video by Trīne - thx! https://youtu.be/vmY7qvn3VyY
- female KAIA: 20.04.2024 at 14.26.06
viewtopic.php?p=13413#p13413 + videos by Trīne - thx! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O87dqVowCfk + first meeting https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0Io-HvZOZI

EGGs- laying
- FIRST egg: 28.04.2023, first view at 09.20, Karl II is on the nest
viewtopic.php?p=14003#p14003
- SECOND EGG egg: 01.05.2023, first - public - view at 05.04, Karl II is on the nest
viewtopic.php?p=14255#p14255
- THIRD egg: 02.05.2023, first - public - view at 05.19, Karl II is on the nest
viewtopic.php?p=14430#p14430
- FOURTH egg: 05.05.2023, first view at 06.31, Karl is away (all night)
viewtopic.php?p=14618#p14618

CHICKs - hatching
- FIRST chick: 01.06.2023 at 01.26, Kaia is on the nest alone
viewtopic.php?p=16860#p16860 + video by our Madli https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0xXNQUx20M&t=9s
- SECOND chick: 01.06.2023 at 16.45, Kaia is on the nest
viewtopic.php?p=16906#p16906 + video by our Madli https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nykf4UqeBbo&t=3s
- THIRD chick: 03.06.2023 at 20.41
viewtopic.php?p=17147#p17147 + video by our Madli https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XCbsogJ6I94
- FOURTH chick: 05.06.2023 at 05.01
viewtopic.php?p=17310#p17310 + video by our Madli https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ISg5tb8TQCE
- 11.06.2023 Karl's brood reduction attempt on #4 (video by our Madli, be carefully! https://youtu.be/B1_lV9il1c0)
viewtopic.php?p=17912#p17912
- 15.06.2023 brood reduction by Karl II at 19.38, he flew out with the 10 days old chick; (video by our Madli, don't watch, if you are sensitive! https://youtu.be/1k6xYJ37cbQ)
viewtopic.php?p=18336#p18336 (links to articles about brood reduction, bird infanticide)

RINGING
26.07/27.07 chicks received metal/ornithological and colour plastic ring
- Nr. 1: 7193
- Nr. 2: 7192 + transmitter
- Nr. 3: 7194
viewtopic.php?p=21790#p21790 and next + video by our Madli https://youtu.be/j-x5WUK40ZI

NAMING
- 08.08.2023 7192 KALVI (nr.2/transmitter) - 7193 KIIRE (nr.1)- 7194 KERRI (nr.3)

FLEDGING
- 06.08 maiden flight 7193/67 days old (away fom 9.23 to 9.38)
viewtopic.php?f=75&t=109&p=22639#p22639 + video by our Madli https://youtu.be/4tVXC8-EWJc
- 09.08 maiden flight at 06.24.18 Kerri (7194)/67 days old + at 06.42.47 - Kalvi (7192)/69 days old
+ video by our Madli https://youtu.be/hrWZGg22OJc?si=ql2PkPCZTzSwySRN

LEAVING THE NEST
- KAIA: last seen on the nest on 23.7. at 16.20 (data says she is still in Estonia not very far from the nest - approx. 6 - 10 km)
- KAIA: maybe good bye visit on 15.8. at 16.21
- KAIA: left EE on 22.08 around midday - migration thread viewtopic.php?f=89&t=132

30.08.2023 storklets last seen on the nest (viewtopic.php?p=23971#p23971)
- at 10:34:32 KERRI (nr.3 - 7194) out
- at 10:36:31 KALVI (nr.2 - 7192, transmitter) out - migration thread viewtopic.php?f=89&t=151&p=23981#p23981
- at 10:36:41 KIIRE (nr.1 - 7193) out

- KARL II: on 29.08. at 08.46 last feeding - viewtopic.php?p=23911#p23911)
- KARL II: on 02.09.2023 good by visit 2x - viewtopic.php?p=24101#p24101 + video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cS04t5jfniA by our FB group member Beatrice - thx
- KARL II: migration started on 03.09.2023 migration thread viewtopic.php?p=21177#p21177

OTHER MAJOR EVENTS
- before Karl's arrival the nest visited two different male storks
- 16.04.2023 at 10.27 one female stork ("brown") arrived to the nest
viewtopic.php?p=13097#p13097 + video by our Madli https://youtu.be/lH5reOjw9r8
- 17.04.2023 at 13.29 next female arrived to the nest
viewtopic.php?p=13162#p13162 + videos by our Madli viewtopic.php?p=13195#p13195
- 18.04.2023 at 12.22 the "brown" female is there again
viewtopic.php?p=13235#p13235
- 27.24.2023 Ural Owl Attacked the nest
https://youtu.be/J3HzByRgiWQ video by our Urszula - thx!
- 13.05.2023 A strange stork lands in the nest! Kaia defends the eggs
viewtopic.php?p=15101#p15101 + video https://youtu.be/irJ_Yzfaf2M video by our Madli

Kaia is missed
- 10.07.2023 departure at 19.00 (after feeding the chicks) - 13.07.2023 arrival at 13.51 (feeding the chicks)

-----
- documentation - videos by our Madli (playlist) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-3mtLl ... 954q_Zhpx6 (or https://www.youtube.com/@madli9031)

-----
SEASON 2022 in our forum ((overview on this first page): viewtopic.php?p=838#p838
- 4 eggs, 3 chicks hatched + 1 foster chick (Bonus); 4 storklet fledged (Bonus + Waba, Voog, Iks)
- 2 storklet received transmitter:
migration thread for Waba: viewtopic.php?f=65&t=88
migration thread for Bonus: viewtopic.php?p=9097#p9097

SEASON 2021 (recap) viewtopic.php?p=973#p973
- 4 eggs, 3 chicks hatched, 3 storklet fledged (Udu, Tuul and Pikne)
- Tuul perished on 18 August (most probably predation); Pikne perished on 06 June 2022 during spring migration in Turkey (most probably collision with power lines); Udu is still alive
migration thread for Udu: viewtopic.php?f=65&t=90

SEASON 2021 (Kaia arrived to Karl II) - no chicks hatched

RESIDENTS

2022-04-12 at 12.53.35: first time both on the nest (male Karl is with ring, screenshot by our Madli)

[marika.solo]

prepared by our Madli in the previous season- thx!

LOCATION

We can see the nest of black storks nesting in Karula National Park for the eighth season in a row. The old natural nest with an interesting construction had collapsed in half by the spring of 2018, which is why this artificial nest was built right beside the old nest, which we now monitor with a camera.
Image and text: https://www.looduskalender.ee/n/node/5426

KARULA NATIONAL PARK

The smallest (surface area: 123 km²) and hilliest national park in Estonia, Karula National Park is located in the Karula Uplands, on the borders of Valga and Võru counties. The varied terrain of Karula was placed under national protection, with the original landscape protection area being designated a national park in 1993. The park was established to preserve the natural environment found in the hilly landscapes characteristic of Southern Estonia, where forests and lakes abound, as well as species under protection and the cultural heritage of the area.


https://karula.ee/karula-piirkond/vaatamisvaarsused-karula-piirkonnas/

More links with information:
1. https://kaitsealad.ee/en/protected-area ... nal-park-0
2. https://www.loodusegakoos.ee/where-to-g ... ional-park
3. https://kaitsealad.ee/en/protected-area ... 2/nature-4
4. https://www.looduskalender.ee/n/node/5426 (in estonian)

Discover Karula National Park in Estonia - an introducing video about Karula NP


NEST

- Looduskalender article from 2018, from the time this artificial nest was built. (Photos of the nest site back then) https://www.looduskalender.ee/n/node/2277
- The artificial nest and the old natural nest, from above (click) https://www.looduskalender.ee/n/sites/d ... /kurg3.jpg

[marika.solo]

NEST HISTORY

recap by Kotkaklubi (translation Madli who is Estonian)

Karl II and Kaia in Karula (2020 - )

2020 In 2020, the live broadcast from the nest started on April 9. By that time, Karl II had already lined the nest with a fresh layer of moss. At the beginning of May, a young female bird came to the nest and was named Kaia. On May 14, she laid her first egg, and on May 18, she laid her second egg. This is about a month later than usual for black storks, so the chances of a successful nesting were slim. Until the beginning of June, Karl II and Kaia were engaged in incubation, but then the eggs were left unattended in the nest for hours. It is possible that they were not fertilized. By June 10, it was clear that the chicks would not hatch in the black stork nest in 2020.



2021 In 2021, we could once again observe the activities of Karl II and Kaia. It could be seen from the behavior of the female bird that she had significantly gained experience over the year. Four eggs were laid between the 24th and 30th. April, but one of the eggs broke during incubation on May 25. The chicks hatched in the last days of May. In the dry summer, it was difficult for the old birds, especially the male bird Karl, to find food for his young. However, in the first days of August, all three chicks became capable of flying. Since the chicks got GPS transmitters on their legs during the ringing, we were able to follow their movements even after they left the nest. The first two chicks left the nest together on August 16. One of them probably died after an eagle attack a few days later in southwestern Estonia. The second, however, took a direction from Southwest Estonia to the north, visited Matsalu and Saaremaa, after which it headed towards wintering areas in Latvia. Crossing the European continent, he deviated slightly west of the traditional migration corridor of black storks and crossed the Mediterranean directly from Greece to Egypt. He spent the first winter in the Central African Republic, after which he returned to Europe, where he is still. The third fledgling left the nest on August 20, headed straight south, made an extended stop in the Moldova-Romania border area, and then moved through Bulgaria and Turkey to Syria. He spent the first winter in East Africa, but died on the way back north in the summer of 2022 in Turkey.

2022 Karl II and Kaia arrived at the nest in the second week of April. Kaia laid four eggs at the end of April. At the end of May, three chicks hatched. However, four chicks fledged from the nest. Namely, a foster chick was brought to them on June 29 - the oldest of the sons rescued from Jan and Jaanika's nest. In order to cope with the extra chick, two fish baskets were placed in the known feeding streams of Karl II, where extra food was regularly brought. All four chicks made their first flight on August 10. Two of them - stepchild Bonus and eldest son - were fitted with transmitters. Also the female bird, Kaia got one . The migration of the two chicks and the old birds of Karula, Karl II and Kaia, can be monitored using the migration map.



Btw. Karl II nested there with Kati (mate of Karl) already in the season 2019:
In 2019, Karl did not return from his spring migration. His transmitter went missing on March 29 in Syria. In the first days of April, Kati and an unknown black stork, who was named Karl II, arrived at the nest. Kati adopted the new male bird and laid four eggs between 12 and 18. April . On May 16, the first three chicks hatched, and on May 17, the fourth chick, which was thrown out of the nest by the female bird on May 23. The remaining three chicks grew well, but were still not big enough to fight the goshawk that attacked the nest. As a result of repeated attacks, on June 20, the hawk pulled one of the young storks from the nest. The two chicks that remained in the nest were ringed on July 12. They were also equipped with GPS transmitters. At first, the storks were alienated by the reddish-brown colored transmitter on the back of one of the chicks, but they got used to it after a couple of days. The young left the nest in the third week of July. The first stork started its migration on August 10, the second, which had injured its wing during flight exercises on August 6, visited the nest until August 17. In a week and a half, he recovered enough to go on a journey.

source https://www.kotkas.ee/klubi/must-toonekure-kaamera

[marika.solo]

April 11
Hello everyone

stream is public

first view on the nest (rewind): https://i.postimg.cc/hvJMmCKQ/2023-04-11-k-07-31-03.jpg

Looks like from 7:54 to 9:54 was one (first) stork and from 12:41 to 13:06, from 13:30 to 13:44, from 16:09 to 16:37 was another (? second) stork

(cleaning)


it is male stork (arrived singing, ...)


the visitor is here again (the second one)


for night the nest is empty https://i.postimg.cc/q70mFXxW/2023-04-11-k-23-35-27.jpg

the meeting with Karl II will be unpleasant So it's going most probably to be a battle about the nest when Karl II arrives.

[marika.solo]

April 12
Hello everyone

the stranger stork arrived also today morning - singing; stork is preening and poking the nest - working with the old moss and we see rearranging some twigs (stork sings like males, but behaves more like one female - maybe it is one young stork)

07.20.31 in - 08.00.55 out from the curved branch



There will be a clarification of ownership. I hope it doesn't get too bad.

Unfortunately I need to go out.

[marika.solo]

I just arrived home and Karl II is here



​12:40:18 Karl off (to the right)

[marika.solo]

I scrolled back

here is his arrival


singing, fanned tail feathers


VIDEO by Trīne - thank you very, very much
The male Karl II has successfully returned from Africa.12.04.2023

[marika.solo]

14.19.02 Karl is back - singing, he is working with twiggs, with the old moss, ... he is preening himself and time to time he is again and again singing

simply handsome

[marika.solo]

who is above?




14:35:34 the camera is buffering
https://i.postimg.cc/VN1PTsMk/2023-04-12-14-35-34.jpg

[marika.solo]

15.58.03 stream is back - Karl is away

little change on the nest bottom