BIRDS KNOW NO BOUNDARIES

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Valley (Photo: Ephi Sharir). 100 million bird lovers travel the world bird watching, with the Middle East a favorite des
BIRDS KNOW NO BOUNDARIES

The Desert Tawny Owl breeds in the desert areas of the Middle East and is of high interest to birders from Europe and North America (Photo: Roni Livne)

Cross-border Environmental Projects in the Middle East for People and Nature

100 million bird lovers travel the world bird watching, with the Middle East a favorite destination; in the photo Dutch birders observe the amazing raptor migration in the Eilat Mountains (Photo: Yossi Leshem)

Muslim and Jewish students observing Cranes together in the Hula Valley (Photo: Ephi Sharir)

Israelis, Jordanians and Palestinians dancing at the end of a joint Barn Owl Seminar in Jordan (Photo: Yossi Leshem)

Satellite photo of the Middle East (Courtesy of NASA)

One of the proposed projects aims at advancing birding tourism in the Middle East by means of joint projects with schoolchildren from Europe, Africa and the Middle East studying migration data by tracking migration on the Internet, satellite-based tracking with GPS, online cameras in birds’ nests, radars and more (Drawing: Az van Oyen)

FOREWORD

If fish were in need of the governor’s leave to swim

Europe, Asia and Africa has made it an important bird

If birds were in need of government permits to fly

migrating bird that knows no boundaries constitutes

We would be left in a world without birds and without fish Thus, freely translated, wrote Syrian poet Nizar Qabbani in one of his poems. A sea without fish? The sky without birds? Clearly, this would be terrible! A world without dimensions, without movement, without freedom? Fortunately, birds take to the skies without government permits. The top world leaders and economists meet at the

migration route, almost unsurpassed worldwide. Every for us a symbol of freedom and peace. I have no doubt that especially in the Middle East, partnerships on environmental topics in general, and birding in particular, can forge bridges and create a unique model for the entire world. Let us, the world leaders, follow the migrating birds, and protect the biodiversity of the multitude of species that fill the skies, the oceans and the five continents for all the generations to come. That harmony is the subject of this meeting.

The Bearded Vulture (“Peres” in Hebrew), whose name was adopted by Israel’s 9th President Mr. Shimon Peres, went extinct as a breeding species in the Middle East as of 1982. In that year the last pair nested next to the Dead Sea in the Great Rift Valley. Reintroduction is planned in the Middle East region (Drawing: Martin Rinik)

World Economic Forum at Davos in order to discuss an improved economic future for our world. One billion birds migrate annually over the Middle East, and the region’s unique position as a bottleneck between

Yours truly, Shimon Peres The 9th President of the State of Israel

The Middle East comprises an international junction with a billion migrating birds annually

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BACKGROUND

• The subject of nature protection and environmental conservation in general, and birds in particular, has the potential to bridge between nations, especially in regions of conflict. • A number of very successful joint projects are operating in the Middle East, for example, the regional project in which Barn Owls are used as pest control agents in agriculture in order to reduce the use of pesticides, communication via the Internet on topics of bird migration and habitat conservation, and more. These projects bring together farmers, schoolchildren and conservationists in Israel, Jordan and the Palestinian Authority as a lever to promoting nature conservation throughout the region in people-to-people activities. • In view of our successes, our vision is to promote a number of additional projects 2

with the emphasis on birds, nature and the environment in the Middle East, in collaboration and with the assistance of additional international organizations and foundations in Europe and North America. • Use art and music to involve artists, schoolchildren and the general public to save and raise awareness to problematic natural environments, such as the Dead Sea, the lowest place on earth, with the emphasis on regional cooperation. • Present these activities around the world, as a model for copying mainly in developing countries and conflict areas. • Raise funding for the six projects presented here: 2 million Euros per year for 5 years, a total of 10 million Euros.

This initiative constitutes collaboration on the subjects of education, conservation of birds and their habitat and research between the Tel Aviv University (Israel), the University of Lausanne (Switzerland), the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel (SPNI)’s Hoopoe Foundation for bird conservation, partners in Jordan (Amman Center for Peace and Development, ACPD) and the Palestinian Authority, and the Israeli Ministry for Regional Cooperation. October 26th, 1994: Signing of the Peace Treaty between Jordan and Israel over two decades ago. Front row (from left to right): Jordanian General Mansour Abu Rashid, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, US President Bill Clinton, Jordanian Prime Minister Abdelsalam al-Majali; back row (from left to right): Israeli Brig. Gen. Baruch Spiegel, US Secretary of State Warren Christopher, President of Israel Ezer Weizman, His Majesty King Hussein of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan

The “Hoopoe Foundation” of the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel was established with a generous donation by Racheli and Moshe Yanai, as well as additional donors. The aim of the foundation is to strengthen the subject of birding in Israel with the emphasis on education, the protection of birds and their habitat, research as well as the promotion of joint projects with our neighbors, the Jordanians and Palestinians.

FOR PEOPLE AND BIRDS IN THE MIDDLE EAST

A pair of courting European Bee-eaters (Photo: Aharon Shimshon)

General (Ret.) Mansour Abu Rashid with a new message that the Barn Owls bring good and not bad luck as believed in the Muslim tradition (Photo: Motti Charter)

600,000 White Storks (85% of the world population) pass over the Middle East (Photo: Thomas Krumenacker)

The entire Palearctic population of White Pelicans migrates over the Middle East (Photo: Thomas Krumenacker)

A White-throated Kingfisher, a common species in Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian Authority (Photo: Dubi Kalai) Jordanian, Israeli and Palestinian schoolchildren with Mr. Bernard Weber from Switzerland in a campaign to protect the Dead Sea

Palestinian students at the Jericho ringing station Prof. Alexandre Roulin from the University of Lausanne, Switzerland, plays a key role in the cooperation (Photo: Motti Charter)

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PROJECT 1

REINTRODUCTION OF FOUR VULTURE SPECIES TO THE MIDDLE EAST

A bad reputation was the main reason that Bearded Vultures disappeared in the Alps. In the scientific literature of the 19th century, this species was described as a bloodthirsty bird of prey that attacks lambs, sheep and even children. The authorities actively supported the eradication of this species by paying bounties for shot animals. Together with a lack of food due to the low densities of wild ungulates during this period, the population decreased dramatically in the 19th century and the species disappeared completely from the Alps in the beginning of the 20th century. The understanding that Bearded Vultures are not voracious predators but highly specialized raptors which live mainly on the bones of ungulate carcasses came too late for the Alpine population. Luckily, in the 1970s, a group of scientists, conservationists and representatives of governmental organizations and universities initiated an international project for the reintroduction of the Bearded Vulture to the Alps. This project is an outstanding example of how a nearly extinct species can be reintroduced to nature when 4

A Bearded Vulture, reintroduced to the wild from a European zoo in a project of seven countries, soaring above the slopes of the Alps (Photo: Hansruedi Weyrich)

A pair of Bearded Vultures from the captive breeding program at La Garenne, Gland in Switzerland. The male was 47 years old when he died in 2015, the female is 40. They have raised 26 offspring! With the aid of Mr. Peres, we are planning to reintroduce four species of vultures to the Middle East assisted by European breeding programs (Photo: Raoul Feignoux)

nature lovers and conservation organizations work closely together over decades, with very different stakeholders, and over international boundaries. Today, roughtly 200-250 Bearded Vultures live with 29 established breeding units thanks to an international Bearded Vulture program and the annual release of

young Bearded Vultures, which began in 1986. While further releases are required, the project is in a final stage and can be considered as a great success for nature conservation. Four vulture species’ populations have been dramatically reduced over the past 50 years in Israel and the Middle

activities with the general public and schoolchildren, and research using satellite transmitters throughout the Middle East. In addition 250 Griffon Vultures will be imported to Israel from Mediterranean countries (for example, France and Spain) in the next five years. An important objective of this project will be the protection of these four species in the Middle East and eliminating the use of pesticides and poisonings that have constituted and still constitute a major cause resulting in their reduced numbers.

The current status of these four species in Israel is as follows:

Griffons’ nests in Israel 1999-2010 100 # OF NESTING ATTEMPTS

East, and we wish to copy the successful European project to reintroduce the Griffon, Bearded, Lappetfaced and Egyptian Vultures to the Middle East, as was successfully achieved with the reintroduction of the Bearded Vulture to the European Alps in the EU Life project with the seven countries within whose borders the Alps are located, and the Griffon Vulture to the Massif Central in France, in cooperation with European organizations.

80 60

nests north nests south Linear (nests north)

82 71

73

75

65 51 45

40 20

0.90 39

36

33 19

R 2= 4947

38 40 32 29

20

46

44

34 21

22

28 15

0 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

YEARS

Graph demonstrating the steep decline in the Griffon Vulture population in Israel

- Griffon Vulture: today 32 pairs remain out of the approximately 1,000 nesting pairs before the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948 - Lappet-faced Vulture: extinct as a breeding species since 1989; about 30 pairs before 1948 - Bearded Vulture: extinct since 1982 - Egyptian Vulture: 40 pairs remain out of 200 nesting pairs in the past The project will establish captive breeding programs, breeding and acclimation cages next to nature reserves, feeding stations, a campaign aimed at reducing the use of pesticides throughout the Middle East, educational

A poisoned Griffon Vulture (Photo: INPA, Eyal Bartov)

A Griffon Vulture, in danger of extinction in the Middle East – its conservation is one of the proposed cross-border projects (Photo: Pini Chemo)

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PROJECT 2

USING BARN OWLS AND KESTRELS AS BIOLOGICAL PEST CONTROL AGENTS IN AGRICULTURAL FIELDS

The intensive use of agricultural pesticides throughout Israel and across the region poses a grave threat to the environment and its biological diversity, as well as to public health. The region of Israel, Jordan and the Palestinian Authority, located at the junction of three continents, is an important diversity hot spot and is traversed by one of the world’s principle bird migration routes (1 billion birds annually). The aim of the project is a longterm significant reduction in the use of pesticides and

A Jordanian farmer holding a Barn Owl next to a nest box in the Beit Shean Valley, Israel, part of the regional project for using Barn Owls and Common Kestrels as biological pest control agents in agriculture (Photo: Hagai Aharon)

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changing farming habits to become more sustainable and environment friendly. Barn Owls and Kestrels are very common species in Israel, and especially in agricultural areas. For example, each pair of Barn Owls feeds on between 2,000-6,000 rodents per year, making them an efficient alternative to pesticides for the farmers. As both species make their nests in cavities, either natural or manmade, they constitute perfect candidates for populating the specially-designed nesting boxes erected for this purpose. These considerations led to the initiation of the project three decades ago led by the Tel Aviv University and in cooperation with the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel (SPNI), and its evolving to a national project as of 2008 with three government ministries. USAID, the European Union, three Israeli Government Ministries, Tel Aviv, Haifa and Lausanne Universities, the Addax-Oryx Foundation (Switzerland) and the Hanns Seidel Foundation (Germany) have all supported this project over the past decade. In 2011 the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel’s Hoopoe Foundation also began funding the project.

2015 - 3,000 nesting boxes

Graph presenting rise in number of nesting boxes over the years

Graph showing that the amount of the Rosh-80 poison authorized for use changed greatly over the years, but decreased in general with the rise in the use of the Barn Owls. (Dr. Yoav Motro)

Over the last decade, through a leading people-topeople project involving farmers, schoolchildren and conservationists, we have succeeded in establishing 3,000 nesting boxes throughout agricultural fields in Israel, and 270 each in Jordan and the Palestinian Authority. This project has continued without a break, even during periods of conflict in the region. A central component of the project is education and public exposure in Israel, Jordan and the Palestinian Authority, via learning materials, movies and joint seminars, as well as an internet site devoted to the subject and online cameras installed in Barn Owl and Kestrel nests.

2010: President Shimon Peres learning about the regional project – using Barn Owls as pest control agents, Beit Shean Valley, Israel in the Great Rift Valley, with Prof. Yossi Leshem (center) and Shaul Aviel from Kibbutz Sde Eliyahu (Photo: Hagai Aharon)

Barn Owls for peace: A Jordanian female Barn Owl (left) and an Israeli male Barn Owl (right) nested in the Beit Shean Valley and raised together 7 chicks in great harmony (Photo: Motti Charter)

A Barn Owl nesting box made from a recycled box. Each pair of owls feasts on 2,000‑6,000 rodents per year. 3,000 nesting boxes have been posted in Israel, 270 in the Palestinian Authority and 270 in Jordan. A significant expansion of the project is necessary in the Palestinian Authority and Jordan (Photo: Amir Ezer)

In 2013 a male Barn Owl with two females (bigamy) resulted in 17 nestlings that fledged out of the 20 eggs that were laid in an abandoned waterhole on the Judean Plain. As far as we know, this is the first documented case in Israel and perhaps in the world (?!). The breeding cycle and the photographs were recorded by Ezra Haddad, an inspector of the Israel Nature and Parks Authority

When checking the success of the project in reducing the use of pesticides by examining the amounts of pesticides that farmers received licenses to use in comparison to the years before the erecting of nesting boxes, it becomes clear that the years since the initiation of the project have shown a sharp decline in their use, thus establishing the project’s success. We require project funding for the next three years with the emphasis on promoting regional cooperation with the Jordanians and Palestinians in this initiative whose importance extends far beyond its research and environmental benefits, to the people-to-people interactions in a region ridden by conflict.

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PROJECT 3

ARTISTS AND MUSIC FOR NATURE

The Dead Sea is a unique site worldwide as the lowest point on earth, and it is dying. The Dead Sea is one of the most unique geographic formations in the world, supporting unique ecosystems and harboring historic and cultural treasures. The long-term decline of the water level is creating an ecological imbalance on both land and sea that will eventually destroy this unique and precious resource. It also constitutes a common point of contact for Israel, Jordan and the Palestinian Authority. As such it attracts very high interest by Israel, Jordan and the Palestinian Authority specifically, and also very high

Artist at work in the Hula Valley – 40 artists participated

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international interest, and especially because the Dead Sea is part of the Great Rift Valley (GRV) that traverses 22 countries from Turkey to Mozambique. Therefore this project could compromise a model for copying in third world countries in Africa situated along the GRV. The Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel (SPNI) and the Hoopoe Foundation together with the Amman Center for Peace and Development (ACPD, Jordan), Palestine Wildlife Society (PWLS, Palestine) and the international Artists For Nature Foundation (ANF) are

Watercolor on paper of cranes in flight by Wolfgang Weber

planning a bold new project to raise global awareness to the plight of the Dead Sea. Established in 1990, Artists for Nature is a unique organization that brings together renowned international artists to produce art inspired by and created in endangered environments. The events and donated art are used to raise support and draw attention to the need for protecting these areas and species, and to imbue nature appreciation as an essential element of sustainable development. Artists for Nature has participated in 14 successful projects, spanning four

One of the artists next to her work

Winter 2012: Paul Winter playing in the Hula Valley Festival to 500 people part of his new composition “Flyways”

Paul Winter performing for 23,000 members of the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel (SPNI) in the Negev Desert. Paul Winter flew with a motorized glider alongside 4,000 migrating Storks from north Israel to the Negev in the south, and this was the inspiration for his new composition “Flyways”

March 1994: for the 40th anniversary of the SPNI, Paul Winter played for the Dalai Lama as a message of peace in the environment. Over 6,000 people attended the event in the Eilat Mountains overlooking Israel, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Jordan as the sun rose. Standing: Prof. Yossi Leshem, SPNI CEO

continents and included over 130 artists who have garnered the organization international acclaim. During 2008 and 2009 we hosted over 40 artists in the Hula Valley who have produced a book and a collection of postcards and posters of their drawings which has been sold to the public with the profits donated to bird conservation projects in Israel and the Middle East.

in the open landscapes of the Dead Sea drawing and painting at Jericho (Palestinian Authority), Ein Gedi (Israel) and Wadi Mujeb (Jordan). In addition, there will be tours, lectures, performances and workshops for students, artists and the general public. Thousands of people, including schoolchildren, will be exposed to the multiple problems facing the Dead Sea via music and art. The ten day long festival will take place at different areas within each country and culminate in an exhibition of their work that will form the basis of a travelling exhibition and a full color art book of the project.

A special concert is planned with Paul Winter who will perform his new composition “Flyways” that incorporates bird songs and varied musical traditions from the countries along the Great Rift Valley migration corridor. Paul Winter is a world-renowned concert musician, composer and recording artist. With his unique genre of “Earth Music” he has introduced to a global audience the beauty of diverse cultures and the voices of the endangered species of what he calls “the greater symphony of the Earth”. He has recorded 35 albums, of which 11 have received Grammy nominations and 7 have won Grammy Awards.

Fifteen internationally-renowned wildlife artists will visit the Dead Sea for ten days and work with Jordanian, Palestinian and Israeli artists in public events that will draw in local visitors. The artists will spend each day

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PROJECT 4

MIGRATING BIRDS KNOW NO BOUNDARIES – ECOTOURISM AND A TOOL FOR EDUCATION

ECOTOURISM The Israeli Government approved funding to the amount of 10 million dollars (2011-2015) to set up a network of seven new national birdwatching centers in Israel that will significantly advance birding tourism by expert birdwatchers for nature lovers from around the world and also for Israelis of all ages. Expanding the birdwatching network to be suitable for the public will necessitate further support and funding, and our aim is to extend this to the Palestinian Authority and Jordan as well under their leadership. Then we will be able to offer overseas tourists a package deal that will include visiting Israel, the Palestinian Authority and Jordan all in one for birding. Following are two examples: 1. The Champion of the Flyways competition, organized by the SPNI’s Israel Ornithological Center (IOC), has attracted high interest worldwide since its inception in 2014. During 24 straight hours, about 30 teams compete to spot the highest number of bird species in the Negev and Eilat. The income of about $50,000 from the event was dedicated to a project for bird conservation and habitat protection. 10

2. For the past five years we have held the Crane Race, an educational project which combines sport with raising awareness to bird watching and migration. Several thousand runners including professional athletes, army soldiers and officers, schoolchildren

from Arab and Jewish schools in Israel as well as from Palestinian and Jordanian schools have run around the Agamon-Hula Lake in north Israel and enjoyed bird watching activities.

Birdwatchers from all over the world flock to Eilat to see the spring migration (Photo: Yossi Leshem)

2

Merom Hagalil

3

1 Hula Lake Park

Afek

5

4

Kfar Rupin

Ma'agan Michael

6 Tel Aviv

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Ayalon Park

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Latrun 9 Jerusalem

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December 27th, 2015: Israel’s 9th President, Mr. Shimon Peres, sets the runners off in the Crane Race in the Hula Valley (Photo: JINI Photo Agency, Ancho Gosh (KKL))

Ein Gedi

11 West Negev

12 13

Sde Boker

Hatzeva

14

Lotan

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Eilat

Location of 15 national birdwatching centers

The Palestinian and Israeli Sunbirders team with their trophy at the Champion of the Flyways competition (Photo: Yuval Dax)

Every year a delegation of Jordanian runners participates in the Crane Race running together with the Israelis (Photo: JINI Photo Agency, Ancho Gosh (KKL))

EDUCATION Thousands of researchers and educators study bird migration on a variety of levels throughout the world. We have approached Google, NASA, ESA (European Space Agency) and others to develop technologies under one umbrella to make bird migration accessible to students and the general public to track online and encourage people-to-people communication across borders. The Osprey, due to its cosmopolitan range and popularity, was selected as a flagship species to provide an opportunity to engage and link communities across the world and to provide new and exciting educational opportunities. Ospreys have been the subject of numerous tracking 11

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Osprey brings a fish to his nestlings in Tiran Island in southern Sinai (Photo: Yossi Eshbol)

Swifts at Schiff House in Tel Aviv where online camera have been installed in their nests (Drawing: Tuvia Kurtz)

studies and as a result their migratory habits are now well-understood with the tracking data readily available online from satellite transmitters and online cameras in nests, therefore providing a unique “live” educational opportunity and the potential to enable students across the world to engage with bird migration in a new and exciting way. Our website www.birds.org.il plays a key role with hundreds of schools in Israel and is being developed for a larger scale platform. We have developed an international program that involves pupil-to-pupil learning with students from different countries following the migrating Osprey and other birds on its international journey. Using the internet, classes can track the progress

of these birds, and understand that the phenomenon of migration is the same over the world and in many cultures. Another project involves Common Swifts, Peregrine Falcons, Common Kestrels and Lesser Kestrels that nest throughout urban environments and can be used to expose communities to these birds and their habitats. These birds nest in public buildings, churches, mosques and synagogues throughout the world and can be used as a platform for global cooperation, also by Muslim, Jewish and Christian religious authorities. Online cameras have already been installed in Swifts’ nests in Israel, in Osprey and additional birds nests in Europe.

Map of migrating Osprey from Finland, carrying a satellite transmitter on its back, showing his flight route to Africa through Israel (Source: Prof. Pertti Saurola)

88 pairs of Swifts nest in the Western Wall, the holiest Jewish site in Jerusalem

Schoolchildren track Swifts, which nest in city houses, via online cameras (Photo: Amir Ezer)

The Rabbi of the Western Wall blesses the Swifts on their return from Africa

June 2013: Children from an elementary school in Kfar Kama in the Galilee (Circassian school) performing the “Dance of the Vulture” in the concluding ceremony of 100 schools that took part in the “Yes to the Bird” project in Northern Israel. Half the participating schools were from the Arab sector

Nir Barkat, Jerusalem’s Mayor, also participated in the ceremony

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PROJECT 5

DATABASE FOR MONITORING THE EASTERN FLYWAY USING A NETWORK OF RADAR, RINGING STATIONS, BIRDERS AND GPS IN THE MIDDLE EAST

Conservation consequences as a result of climate change are expected to be particularly severe in the Middle Eastern countries because species biodiversity in this area is high due to the unique geographic position of this region at the convergence of three continents. Moreover, this area also serves as major nexus for at least 500 million migrating birds in each spring and

The migration route of the German White Stork “Princessa” from Loburg, Germany to Cape Town, South Africa – almost the same route used for 13 years (1993‑2005)

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fall. The main migration influx over the area is part of the Eastern European and Western Asia Flyways. Some 280 Eurasian species of migratory birds pass through Israel during each migration season or winter in Israel. Many of these species are of particular conservation concern because of rapidly declining population trends at their breeding grounds. Our understanding of the

Migrating White Storks over Israel tracked by a motorized glider (Photo: Jerry Young)

detrimental factors that lead to bird population declines and the measures needed to mitigate these negative trends depend on our ability to assess these factors at the non-breeding areas. In this sense, the Middle East, where a large proportion of northern breeding bird population pass and over-winter, may play a significant role in the fate of northern breeding bird populations and, more generally, northern latitudes biodiversity. Over the past three decades, monitoring and migration research has significantly advanced our knowledge of birds and bird migration in Israel. Radar, ground observers with data of 35 years of monitoring soaring migrating birds, bird ringing stations, motorized glider, satellites-based tracking and data loggers are now used in conjunction as part of a multi-faceted and detailed project aiming to quantify migration at multiple temporal and spatial scales. In 2014 and 2015 Israel and Germany held two joint workshops on how climate change will affect birds and bird migration. We are devising a new collaboration for 2016-2020 between European and Israeli researchers, to further investigate this important topic.

The Russian weather MRL-5 radar at Latrun converted for using to track the flocks of migrating birds

A network of ground observers has been monitoring the migration of raptors, Storks and Pelicans for 35 consecutive years

Among the project objectives are to: 1. Examine the usage of stopovers sites by migrating birds in relation to the intense human-related development in the Middle East by using existing data sources for birds and climate. 2. Develop a nationwide monitoring system to study the effects of climate change on the Eastern European Flyway using integrated network of electronic tracking devices such as radar, satellites, data loggers, thermal sensors, as well as ringing stations and a network of ground observers. 3. Establish the relevant infrastructure in the Palestinian Authority and Jordan, including the training of

36,000 Lesser-spotted Eagles in one day as seen by the Russian radar at Latrun

Palestinian and Jordanian researchers, conservationists and educators. 4. Compile an “Atlas of Migration of the Birds of Israel”, such as the recently published German Bird Migration Atlas. 5. Process climate data from the past three decades, obtained from governmental agencies, meteorologists and atmospheric models to examine the effects of meteorological and climatic factors on bird migration at multiple timescales. 6. Expand the soaring bird migration survey to include both the autumn and spring.

Radar showing nocturnal migration over an area of 30 x 30 km crossing the Mediterranean coast at midnight near Tel Aviv, as seen by the Ben Gurion Airport approach radar

7. Develop Citizen Science projects for migratory species such as Storks, Pelicans and Turtle doves in Israel, Palestine Authority and Jordan and integration of the data through a website with advanced visual capabilities to produce dynamic migration maps for the general public. 8. Develop educational and touristic program and integrate researchers’ findings into existing environmentally friendly agriculture and flight safety projects as well as climate change mitigation measures. 9. Involve the European Space Agency (ESA).

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PROJECT 6

BAT CONSERVATION IN THE JORDAN VALLEY

In October 1994 the peace treaty between Israel and Jordan was signed resulting in the IDF abandoning many of its bunkers which have been gradually adopted by bats. It was discovered that 12 bat species, some rare and endangered, had populated the bunkers, in some cases one of the only meeting places for African, Asian and European species. As the bats found it difficult to hang onto the smooth ceilings, work to conserve the bats was done by adding gripping areas, protecting the bunkers at critical periods, research, monitoring, and public awareness projects. Since this discovery more than 15 old bunkers have been converted into homes for bats. This project was adopted as one of the projects of the “Army for the Protection of Nature in Israel – Commanders Take Responsibility for the Environment”, and soldiers of the Rift Valley Brigade joined up with the Home Front Command battalions to converting these abandoned bunkers to a bat paradise. Soldiers of the Home Front Command brought in their unique search and rescue skills, using heavy engineering equipment to create new openings into the bunkers for bats to enter. In addition, the ceilings and walls were covered with mesh and other features to provide the bats, hanging upside down, with gripping areas for their legs. The success of this project has crossed the border, and our neighbors in Jordan are planning a similar initiative. General Mansour Abu Rashid, Jordan, is leading this initiative in Jordan, and learning about the bat conservation project, with the aim of implementing on the Jordanian side of the border. (There are nine insectivorous bat species in danger of extinction in the region!) 16

April 2014: General (Ret.) Mansour Abu Rashid, Chairman of the Amman Center for Peace and Development (ACPD) in Jordan, learning about the bats in bunkers project with IDF officers in a bunker near Abdallah Bridge (Photo: Yossi Leshem)

1000’s of bats already enjoying the bunkers (Photo: Eran Amichai)

A female Trident Leaf-nosed Bat hanging from the ceiling of a bunker in the Jordan Valley, holding a baby close to her chest (Photo: Eran Levin)

Officers of the Rift Valley Brigade working to convert the bunkers into roosts suitable for the bats (Photo: Shmulik Yedvab)

Eurasian Hoopoe (Photo: Thomas Krumenacker)

November 2015: A historic meeting in Singapore between President Ma of Taiwan and President Xi Jinping of China after 66 years of conflict.

If they can, then we can as well!

Migrating Cranes on the background of the snowcovered Mt. Hermon, along the Great Rift Valley on the border between Syria, Israel and Lebanon. 500 million birds migrate over this mountain range twice a year (Photo: Dror Galili)

For additional details please contact: Prof. Yossi Leshem [email protected] office: +972-3-6406010 • mobile: +972-52-3257722

www.birds.org.il

billet.co.il

Drawing: Tuvia Kurtz