Shrikes are done, for this year
Fieldwork with both red-backed shrikes and storks (almost) is finally over for us. This year, surprisingly, shrike season started earlier and ended much faster than expected. It is the second year of the project, first with funding, and I must say it could be better, but as it is only my second year of working with this species, it was good enough. May and June were extremely hot this year, and despite a severe drought, shrikes were doing great, and the success of the first brood was much higher than in the previous year. Moreover, we observed a male-biased sex ratio. Błażej Nowak, who was one of the most important people in our “shrike team” this year, as he was reading rings at the study area, he found that two males were feeding fledgelings from the brood where probably none of them was the father. We banded almost 50 adults with aluminium and plastic rings, and also fledgeling from 7 nests. We also had few birds banded in a previous year and even one banded as a fledgeling! We also conducted experiments for neophilia, and we put few cameras to keep an eye for the nests. The effect was unexpectable as for the first time we could watch fledgelings leaving the nest!
I would like to thank Anita Szymysł, Błażej Nowak and Marcin Tobółka for help and encouragement. Thanks, guys!
