Page 130 - Panuccio2012
P. 130

MARCH 2011  SHORT COMMUNICATION                                         91

observed to migrate over Ustica, suggesting that this strat-       LITERATURE CITED
egy may be particularly important for harriers, which are
more likely to use powered flight than other Accipitri-            AGOSTINI, N. 1992. Spring migration of honey buzzards
formes (Spaar and Bruderer 1997, Panuccio et al. 2004).                (Pernis apivorus) at the Straits of Messina in relation
Because in other areas raptors fly at specific altitudes in            to atmospheric conditions. Journal of Raptor Research
particular wind conditions, I could not exclude the possi-             26:93–96.
bility that with tailwinds some raptors may have passed
undetected flying at higher altitude (Kerlinger and Gau-           ———. 2005. Are earlier estimates of Accipitriformes
threaux 1984, Kerlinger 1989, Panuccio et al. 2010). How-              crossing the Channel of Sicily (central Mediterranean)
ever, observations made in spring in the central Mediter-              during spring migration accurate? Journal of Raptor Re-
ranean area suggested that European Honey-buzzards                     search 39:184–186.
tend to fly at a lower altitude with tailwinds (Agostini
1992, Agostini et al. 2005).                                       ———, C. CARDELLI, AND M. GUSTIN. 2007. Factors shaping
                                                                       pathways of European Honey Buzzards (Pernis apivorus)
   Finally, the lower numbers of raptors observed in the               during spring migration in the central Mediterranean
early morning hours may be related to the weaker thermal               basin. Journal of Raptor Research 41:57–61.
currents in the cool morning; in this case, individuals may
choose to bypass the strait and use a more direct route            ——— AND A. DUCHI. 1994. Water-crossing behavior of
over the sea (see also Agostini et al. 2007). Given the ob-            Black Kites (Milvus migrans) during migration. Bird Be-
served flight behavior of raptors in the study area, it is             haviour 10:45–48.
possible that soaring birds will risk collision with the struc-
ture of the planned bridge between Sicily and continental          ———, D. LOGOZZO, A. MORABITO, D. MOLLICONE, S. DA-
Italy. Thus, further investigation of potential mortality              VANI, AND O. PFISTER. 1995. La migrazione primaverile
risks is recommended.                                                  dei rapaci Accipitriformi sullo Stretto di Messina. Avo-
                                                                       cetta 19:73.
EFECTOS DEL VIENTO SOBRE LA MIGRACIO´ N VISI-
BLE DE RAPACES EN LA PRIMAVERA EN EL ESTRE-                        ———, G. MALARA, F. NERI, AND D. MOLLICONE. 1994a. La
CHO DE MESSINA, SUR DE ITALIA                                          migrazione primaverile del falco pecchiaiolo, Pernis api-
                                                                       vorus, sullo Stretto di Messina: problemi di protezione.
   RESUMEN.—Se contaron las rapaces migratorias en el                  Rivista Italiana di Ornitologia 62:187–192.
estrecho de Messina, el cruce sobre el agua ma´s angosto
ubicado entre Sicilia e Italia continental, con el objetivo de     ———, ———, ———, AND ———. 1994b. La migrazione
investigar la influencia de la direccio´ n y la velocidad del          primaverile del Falco pecchiaiolo (Pernis apivorus) a
viento sobre el comportamiento de las rapaces que cruzan               Capo Bon (Tunisia) e sullo Stretto di Messina. Pages
el estrecho. El estudio fue realizado en la primavera, del 27          451–452 in E. Baldaccini, T. Mingozzi, and C. Violani
de marzo al 31 de mayo de 2004. Los mayores nu´ meros de               [EDS.], Atti Museo Regionale Scienze Naturali, Torino,
rapaces se observaron migrando en el estrecho en d´ıas con             Italy.
el viento en contra a la direccio´ n de desplazamiento. La
velocidad del viento no afecto´ el paso de la especie obser-       ———, ———, ———, ———, AND S. MELOTTO. 1994c.
vada con mayor frecuencia, Pernis apivorus. Los resultados             Flight strategies of honey buzzards during spring mi-
sugieren que las rapaces t´ıpicamente cruzan el mar en el              gration across the central Mediterranean. Avocetta
punto ma´s estrecho entre Sicilia y la pen´ınsula italiana             18:73–76.
cuando las condiciones no son propicias para cruzar un
tramo ma´s amplio sobre el agua.                                   ——— AND M. PANUCCIO. 2005. Analysis of the spatial mi-
                                                                       gration patterns of adult honey buzzards (Pernis api-
                               [Traduccio´n del equipo editorial]      vorus) during spring and autumn in the central Medi-
                                                                       terranean. Ring 27:215–220.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
                                                                   ——— AND ———. 2010. Western Marsh Harrier (Circus
   This research was financed entirely by NABU (Nat-                   aeruginosus) migration through the Mediterranean Sea:
urschutzbunde) and Hawk Mediterranean Foundation,                      a review. Journal of Raptor Research 44:136–142.
in collaboration with the Migration Unlimited Network. I
wish to thank Christoph Hein, Antonino Morabito, Dja-              ———, ———, AND B. MASSA. 2005. Flight behaviour of
mila Al Albouini, Elena Grasso, Heiko Menz, Andreas                    honey buzzards (Pernis apivorus) during spring migra-
Quell, and Bianca Rau for their help during observations.              tion over the sea. Buteo 14:3–9.
I appreciate the improvements in English usage made by
C. Riehl through the Association of Field Ornithologists’          BEAMAN, M. AND C. GALEA. 1974. Visible migration of rap-
program of editorial assistance. I’m grateful to Keith L.              tors over the Maltese Islands. Ibis 116:419–431.
Bildstein, Nicolantonio Agostini, Nick Henson, and two
anonymous referees for their useful comments on earlier            BILDSTEIN, K.L. 2006. Migrating raptors of the world: their
drafts of the manuscript.                                              ecology and conservation. Cornell University Press,
                                                                       Ithaca, NY U.S.A.

                                                                   CORSO, A. 2001. Raptor migration across the Strait of Mes-
                                                                       sina, southern Italy. British Birds 94:196–202.

                                                                   FERGUSON-LEES, J. AND D. CHRISTIE. 2001. Raptors of the
                                                                       world. Houghton Mifflin, Boston, MA U.S.A.

                                                                   GENSBØL, B. 1992. Guida ai rapaci diurni d’Europa, Nord
                                                                       Africa e Medio Oriente. Zanichelli Editore S.p.A., Bo-
                                                                       logna, Italy.

                                                                   130
   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135