FW: [tanzaniabirds] an important paper on Lake Natron

----- Forwarded Message -----
From: "Harper, David (Prof.)" <dmh@leicester.ac.uk>
To: Marc Baker <marc@ei-tz.com>
Cc: Neil and Liz Baker <tzbirdatlas@yahoo.co.uk>; "tanzaniabirds@yahoogroups.com" <tanzaniabirds@yahoogroups.com>; flamingo group <fsg@wwt.org.uk>; zambiabirds <zambiabirds@yahoogroups.com>; "vjr7@le.ac.uk" <vjr7@leicester.ac.uk>
Sent: Thursday, 8 August 2013, 0:38
Subject: RE: Lake Natron. Lesser Flamingo

Mark, are you aware of this? Remote sensing the hydrological variability of Tanzania's Lake Natron, a vital Lesser Flamingo breeding site under threat. E.J. Tebbs, J.J. Remedios, S.T. Avery, D.M. Harper,
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1642359313000037
David

Dr David M. Harper
Professor of Limnology & Catchment Sciences
Department of Biology & Centre for Landscape and Climate Research,
University of Leicester
LE1 7RH, UK
Telephone (Leicester) 0116 252 3346
(Cellphone) 07919071701
Kenya cellphone (+254)(0)720 276671
Skype davidmharper

Professional homepages -
http://www.le.ac.uk/biology/staff/bldmh.htm
and
http://scholar.google.co.uk/citations?user=xI8fLHcAAAAJ&hl=en
________________________________________
From: Harper, David (Prof.)
Sent: 07 August 2013 13:11
To: Marc Baker
Cc: Neil and Liz Baker; tanzaniabirds@yahoogroups.com; flamingo group; zambiabirds; vjr7@le.ac.uk
Subject: RE: Lake Natron. Lesser Flamingo

Dear Marc,

Thank you, that will be very interesting and valuable as the first publication of a breeding event. It is certainly possible that the brown young at Bogoria were recently hatched as Victoria Robinson documented some of them still being fed by parents on crop milk even though they must have flown from Natron to there, so not much older than 3 months. I am still waiting for the breakdown of numbers from NMK.

Best wishes

David

________________________________________
From: Marc Baker [marc@ei-tz.com]
Sent: 07 August 2013 12:39
To: Harper, David (Prof.)
Cc: Neil and Liz Baker; tanzaniabirds@yahoogroups.com; flamingo group; zambiabirds
Subject: Lake Natron. Lesser Flamingo

Dear David

I have just (last week) been up at Bogoria and a seriously flooded Baringo, the water levels at Nakuru are also very high, I wonder how this is effecting the situation. As you may know I monitored the breeding event during the end of 2012 and early 2013, water levels were high on Lake natron in the first quarter of 2013 which flooded a number of breeding sites. How accurate can you be on ageing these birds? Is it possible that some of the young fledged in March - April or even May?

I visited Balangida Lelu in July which had high water levels, 1000+ LF on the southern shoreline.

As a short synopsis on natron:

Hatching at Lake Natron started in late September 2012 with 2 creches being counted, one of 150 young birds in the southern lagoon and a much larger creche of 2000 in the Pinyinyi delta. During this period of receding water levels I recorded large colony development and egg laying in November and early December. I have recorded the exact locations of these colonies and over the period of one month we have seen hatching which peaked in the second week of December with numbers of young in excess of 100,000 grouped on both the northern and southern colonies. We then had heavy rain and flooding which effected further hatching / survival rates. The birds from the late september hatching have started to move with records of young birds from the coastal region and inland to Singida.

I am currently working on an analysis of the images and I will make these details available through publication once I have completed this work. This will include mapped colony locations, good estimates of numbers and the movement of creches over the surface of the lake.

Image creche 250ind September 2012 Gelai mudflats.
[cid:1ECA033C-E231-4C72-B80A-E4FA4BE3CD4F]

Image December 2012, creche on northern wosi wosi colonies.
[cid:C7F00CD4-3BB5-4E06-9582-59339FC843AA]

Marc Baker
Director
Ecological Initiatives & Carbon Tanzania
+255 (0)784448761
Skype: babaniamh
www.ei-tz.com<http://www.ei-tz.com/>
www.carbontanzania.com<http://www.carbontanzania.com/>

On 4 Aug 2013, at 21:35, Harper, David (Prof.) wrote:

Most of East Africa's flamingos are on Bogoria (NMK count 2 weeks ago). There was a major breeding event in Natron early this year, because even fluffy brown jobs are many at Bogoria. I got the guys to count the 4 classes - brown, grey, grey/pink and adults. Results soon.

There are statistically 4-5 exchanges between East and South Africa every generation, from the genetics results. There is exchange between East and West from the single ringed bird found in Mauritania. And we will shortly publish data showing equally little difference between East African and Indian lessers

Cheers

David

Dr David M. Harper
Professor of Limnology & Catchment Sciences
Department of Biology & Centre for Landscape and Climate Research,
University of Leicester
LE1 7RH, UK
Telephone (Leicester) 0116 252 3346
(Cellphone) 07919071701
Kenya cellphone (+254)(0)720 276671
Skype davidmharper

Professional homepages -
http://www.le.ac.uk/biology/staff/bldmh.htm
and
http://scholar.google.co.uk/citations?user=xI8fLHcAAAAJ&hl=en
________________________________________
From: fsg-bounces@wwt.org.uk [fsg-bounces@wwt.org.uk] On Behalf Of Neil and Liz Baker [tzbirdatlas@yahoo.co.uk]
Sent: 04 August 2013 14:14
To: tanzaniabirds@yahoogroups.com
Cc: zambiabirds; flamingo group
Subject: Re: [FSG] [tanzaniabirds] Fwd: [capebirdnet] Lesser Flamingo

Hi Callan

lets hear what others have to say but what I can add is that there were FAR MORE Lesser Flamingos on the coast at Bagamoyo this morning than we usually see.

around 300 or so with quite a few "birds of the year" (i.e. last season which may have begun in November) among the adults.

only 130 Greaters today, they are usually far more common than Lessers.

Marian, when are you back in Singida ?

we need someone in Rukwa = our great knowledge gap for many birds esp Lesser Flamingos as they will have to use this lake if they HOP to southern Africa.

can our birds overfly Zambia ?? surely not and even if the majority did there would be some stragglers along the way.

NO ONE out there counting flamingos on our major lakes so we NEVER know if numbers are LOW or even lower than "normal".

Neil

Neil and Liz Baker, Tanzania Bird Atlas
P.O. Box 1605, Iringa, Tanzania.
Mobiles: +255 785-311298 and +255 784-834273.
http://tanzaniabirdatlas.com/
Subscribe to: tanzaniabirds-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

From: Birding Africa (Callan Cohen) <callanafrica@gmail.com>
To: tanzaniabirds@yahoogroups.com; kenyabirdsnet <kenyabirdsnet@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Sunday, 4 August 2013, 13:54
Subject: [tanzaniabirds] Fwd: [capebirdnet] Lesser Flamingo

Hi East African birders,

There seem to be small numbers of Lesser Flamingos popping up all over the place in southern Africa. This is a bit anecdotal, but quite a strong impression from a number of observers.

Are they dispersing from East Africa? Any evidence of lower numbers in East Africa?

Thanks

Callan

____________________________________________________
Dr Callan Cohen -- callan@birdingafrica.com<mailto:callan@birdingafrica.com> -- +27 83 256 0491
Blog: http://birdingafricacapetownpelagics.wordpress.com/
Birding Africa: http://www.birdingafrica.com/
Cape Town Pelagics: http://www.capetownpelagics.com/
____________________________________________________
Birdwatch magazine voted Birding Africa as one of the top 5 most recommended bird tour companies in the world (see www.birdingafrica.com<http://www.birdingafrica.com/> for more survey details.)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Begin forwarded message:
From: Shaun Overmeyer <cycletronic1@hotmail.com<mailto:cycletronic1@hotmail.com>>
Date: 03 August 2013 12:34:30 PM SAST
To: Dr W A de Klerk <doc@medismedical.com<mailto:doc@medismedical.com>>, Cape Birdnet <capebirdnet@yahoogroups.com<mailto:capebirdnet@yahoogroups.com>>
Subject: RE: [capebirdnet] Lesser Flamingo

Hi All,

I think we are seeing more Flamingos overall. However I am seeing Lessers where I have not ever seen them. On a similar note. Last weekend I was out on a trip Counting and Atlassing with friends at Cape Cross in Namibia and Mark Boorman who knows the area very well also remarked on the number of Lesser Flamingos.
Shaun
ZS1RA
Subscribe to the SA Ecology Net: http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/saeconet/join
Subscribe to Cape Photo Net: http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/capephotonet/join
http://www.sailblogs.com/member/leopard
http://www.qsl.org.za/7p8dx/index.html
http://www.qrz.com/db/zs1ra
http://sabap2.adu.org.za/
To: capebirdnet@yahoogroups.com<mailto:capebirdnet@yahoogroups.com>From: doc@medismedical.com<mailto:doc@medismedical.com>Date: Sat, 3 Aug 2013 12:00:04 +0200Subject: [capebirdnet] Lesser Flamingo
Hi Otto and others,
About the Lesser Flamingo: I know there was some concern about the Lesser Flamingo numbers in the last few years, so to add onto your message.

I month ago I noticed a substantial increase in lesser Flamingo in the Agulhas National park. The past few years we might see 1 or 2 among Greater flamingo, but this year on one small pan I counted 12.

Then a month later on our trip to the Kgalakgadi, I noticed some LF near Porterville. I phoned a birding friend(farmer) and he told me that he has seen LF on his farm for the first time in history.

Last week we went to Rocher Pan for the weekend and noticed LF just about everywhere(Velddrif, Langebaan, Rocherpan and Verlorenvlei) although still in numbers of 1-12. I did not even try to identify the larger groups(Langebaan, Velddrif) in detail. There could have been more.

Is it only me or do we see a healthy increase in LF numbers lately?

Yours
Wim

[http://www.wwt.org.uk/userfiles/images/Efooters/email_footer_sbs_sponsor.jpg]<https://adoption.wwt.org.uk/sponsor/spoon-billed-sandpiper>

This message is confidential and for the sole use of the individual or entity to whom it is addressed. It may not be disclosed, copied or distributed in any form unless it contains an express statement to the contrary.

The Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust does not accept responsibility for changes made to this message after it was sent. Any personal opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the policy of the organisation.

Company Registered Address: Slimbridge, Gloucestershire, GL2 7BT.
Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (WWT) is a charity registered in England & Wales (No. 1030884) and in Scotland (No. SC039410) and a company limited by guarantee (No. 2882729).
Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (Trading) Ltd. (Company No. 2541350) is a wholly owned subsidiary of WWT.
Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (Consulting) Ltd. (Company No. 2277255) is a wholly owned subsidiary of WWT.

<a href= https://adoption.wwt.org.uk/sponsor/spoon-billed-sandpiper><img src="http://www.wwt.org.uk/userfiles/images/Efooters/email_footer_sbs_sponsor.jpg " width="520" height="163" alt="Sponsor a Spoon-billed Sandpiper"></a> This message is confidential and for the sole use of the individual or entity to whom it is addressed. It may not be disclosed, copied or distributed in any form unless it contains an express statement to the contrary. The Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust does not accept responsibility for changes made to this message after it was sent. Any personal opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the policy of the organisation. Company Registered Address: Slimbridge, Gloucestershire, GL2 7BT. Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (WWT) is a charity registered in England & Wales (No. 1030884) and in Scotland (No. SC039410) and a company limited by guarantee (No. 2882729). Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (Trading) Ltd. (Company No. 2541350) is a wholly owned subsidiary of WWT. Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (Consulting) Ltd. (Company No. 2277255) is a wholly owned subsidiary of WWT.