06 Nov
2006 - Helsinki, Finland – Thanks to advanced
satellite tracking, scientists from WWF-Finland
and its partners have found a previously unknown
migratory route of the lesser white-fronted geese
— the most endangered Arctic goose in Eurasia.
Currently routes of the migratory
species have been well documented from northern
Norway and Finland to Russia’s northern sub-arctic
Kanin Peninsula. From there the population splits
in two separate directions, with some flying via
eastern Hungary towards the Evros River delta
on the border of Greece and Turkey, and others
heading to northern Kazakhstan and then further
south to the Caspian Sea region, even as far south
as the Mesopotamian Marshes in Iraq.
But according to new satellite
tracking results of three lesser white-fronted
geese tagged in Norway last spring as part of
an EU LIFE project, it appears that these geese
may be flying a previously unknown route from
Kazakhstan, heading southwest towards Greece,
rather than south to the Caspian region as initially
thought.
“The present satellite tracking has provided a
lot of new valuable information on the routes
of the geese,” said Petteri Tolvanen, a conservation
officer with WWF-Finland.
“Mapping the flyways is essential for developing
conservation activities aimed at protecting the
species.”
The lesser white-fronted goose (Anser erythropus)
is currently the most endangered bird in the Nordic
countries as a result of hunting and poaching,
with only 20–30 breeding pairs remaining in Norway,
Sweden and Finland.
The world population is estimated
at 25,000.
END NOTES:
• Launched in 1992, the European
Union LIFE (The Financial Instrument for the Environment)
project is one of the spearheads of the EU's environment
policy. Nature conservation projects which contribute
to maintaining or restoring natural habitats and/or
species populations to a favourable conservation
status within the EU's Habitats Directive are
eligible for LIFE-Nature. The EU has allocated
approximately €700 million for more than 800 LIFE-Nature
projects, including satellite tracking of the
lesser white-fronted geese.
• The EU Life Nature project
for the conservation of the lesser white-fronted
goose started in April 2005. The project is run
by WWF Finland, with nine more partners, including
BirdLife, in Finland, Norway, Estonia, Hungary
and Greece.
Petteri Tolvanen, Conservation
Coordinator
WWF-Finland
