Flying from breeding grounds in Uzbekistan, Anya & Arys migrate to India

New Delhi, Jan 18 Anya and Arys the juvenile Egyptian vultures after starting their journey from breeding grounds in the Kyzylkum Desert in Uzbekistan finally settled in northern India by covering 900-1,400 miles.

Two of the three vultures that researchers of the University of East Anglia in Britain tracked migrated to India, including one that has visited all three cities in the Golden Triangle and flew over the iconic Taj Mahal.

This is the first time that migration of this species has been described in Asia. The tracking work is important in identifying causes of decline and defining priorities for conservation for this endangered species.

A ground-breaking migration study has delivered unexpected and invaluable information which will help future conservation efforts for the globally endangered Egyptian vulture.

Migration is an extremely dangerous time for birds with hazards ranging from drowning and hunting to poisoning and electrocution, so this study's results are vital to help inform and shape conservation work aimed at protecting and increasing the remaining population, say researchers.

There are estimated to be only 135 breeding pairs of Egyptian Vultures in Uzbekistan where the project is based.

While similar studies have been undertaken in other regions, results from central Asia have been a missing part of the jigsaw.

Now the project team, co-led by Dr Robert Burnside at the University of East Anglia and with members Dr Vladimir Dobrev from the Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds and Anna Ten from the Institute of Zoology, Uzbekistan, can analyse the information they have collected to identify the type and location of threats faced by Egyptian vultures when migrating in this part of the world.

At the start of the study, GPS tags were attached to juvenile birds at already identified breeding grounds in the Kyzylkum Desert. When the birds flew south for the winter, the team was able to record enlightening details as they tracked the full journeys of three birds named Timur, Anya and Arys.

All three birds initially flew south over Turkmenistan before then taking very different routes.

Timur covered more than 3,800 miles

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