HoverOverUs

Hayfields on dried up valley bogs are one of the main hunting biotopes for agricultural lands in Polesie and for some places in Central Belarus. In this case - in the West Berezina River floodplain. Usually there is high number of Natrix natrix and almost full absence of Vipera berus in such places. The forest is very multivarious: has areas of pine, alder, oak, spruce, aspen etc.; some of those areas are very boggy.
Short-toed Eagle density: c. 1.3 pairs/100 km². Open the map.

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A few articles of Prof. Viktor Belik (Rostov State Pedagogical University) on distribution, number and ecology of Short-toed Eagles in several different regions (Ru):

• Белик В.П., 1994 - Распространение, численность и экология змееяда в степном Подонье [Distribution, number and ecology of Short-toed Eagle in steppe Podonie] // Кавказ. орнитол. вестник, вып.6.- Ставрополь. - С.26-29. /map/

• Афанасьев В.Т., Белик В.П., 1998 - Змееяд в Сумском Полесье [Short-toed Eagle in Sumy Polesie] // Птицы бассейна Сев. Донца, вып.4-5: Мат-лы 4 и 5 конф. “Изучение и охрана птиц басс. Сев. Донца”. - Харьков. - С.45-46. /map/

• Белик В.П., Ветров В.В., Бабич М.В., Трофименко В.В., 1999 - Змееяд в Волгоградской области [Short-toed Eagle in Volgograd Region] // 3 конф. по хищным птицам Вост. Европы и Сев. Азии: Мат-лы конф., ч.2.- Ставрополь. - С.20-23. /map/

The photos were taken during an expedition of Prof. Belik in summer of 2008 in Volgograd Region.

This text opening La Plume du Circaète n° 6 was written by Bernard Joubert and translated to English by Yves Forget. This view of birds studies can be interesting for Short-toed Eagle watchers and researchers in other countries:

If it is almost impossible for the observer who makes the effort to look at him simply, not to develop a certain shape of empathy (sorry Mister Lorenz!), this one can nevertheless keep a certain distance face to face of its subject of observation, a certain objectivity and so develop a speech which we can qualify as scientific.

For some, however, the bird never becomes a close friend. It is never the young-nervous-male-from-the-rocky-valley or just as well the dark-not-so-wild-female. It still remains an animal, a lower being to whom we are entitled to make everything undergo, in defiance of its identity, of its beauty and - who knows? - of its emotionality. And so much the worse for the sublime wanderer transformed in a bum by a piece of plastic.

And so much the worse for the dreamers, the aesthetes and the other visionaries who have an aggravated sensibility.
They are not serious.

This small gallery is compiled from Vladimir Ivanovskiy’s pictures. The photos were taken in Nothern Belarus /map/. Also here you can see Short-toed Eagle chick in the artificial nest built by Dr. Ivanovskiy for them. He is an author of the special method of the building.

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Please download and read a new article of Richard Frèze:

• Richard Frèze, 2008 - Étude de la population de Circaètes sur le massif de la Sainte-Baume et les collines environnantes - (Fr).

And also enjoy please some pictures from it:

Current number of the La Plume du Circaète (Fr) can be downloaded now in two variants: of 1.6 MB - or of 5 MB - PDF file. New materials on Short-toed Eagles of France are collected in it. Heartfelt thanks to Renaud Nadal for placing the version with full-sized images on our site.

The list of contents (Fr):

This is an adult Short-toed Eagle female. Numerous power lines pylons are situated in its hunting territory. From year to year they are used by both Short-toed Eagles of the pair as a perches for hunt. The birds are not afraid of people much.

These photos were taken at a distance of 8 km from Kiev’s housing estates /map/ on August 24^th (© Konstantin Pismennyi).

Photos of different aged Short-toed Eagle chicks are made by Jean-Pierre Malafosse and are published now by courtesy of the author.

They can be helpful to reseachers for estimated determination of the chicks’ age.

This text about nesting Short-toed Eagles in the environs of Marseille as an example of the species adaptation to urbanization is offered by Richard Frèze:

• Richard Frèze, 2008 - Un Circaète aux portes de Marseille (Fr). Also you have a possibility to open pdf-file of the article, view map, /map/ and photos.