By the 17th century, the northern bald ibis was nearly hunted to extinction. But over the last two decades, breeding and conservation efforts have boosted their numbers, which is excellent news!
The problem is that these birds lack the proper instinct to figure out which direction to fly during migration since they never had any guidance from elders born in the wild. So, it’s up to human scientists to teach them the migration route.
The northern bald ibis is known for its bald red head, long curved beak, and black-and-green plumage.
It was once found in North Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, and much of Europe, where it was considered a delicacy. Eventually, the birds disappeared from Europe.
Since 2002, a biologist named Johannes Fritz has been working with the Waldrappteam, a conservation group based in Austria, to grow the northern bald ibis population in Central Europe. The population went from zero to now nearly 300.
As a result, the species moved from a status of “critically endangered” to “endangered.” It was the first-ever attempt at reintroducing a migratory bird species that had gone continentally extinct.
Northern bald ibises still have a natural urge to migrate, but they just don’t know where to fly. Because of this, early reintroduction attempts were unsuccessful, as most birds disappeared soon after they were released.
They flew in different directions instead of returning to warmer places, such as Tuscany, Italy, and ended up dying.
So, the team had to act as their flight instructors. This year was the second time they had to teach the birds a new route to Spain due to climate change.
fluffandshutter – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only, not the actual bird
To prepare them for travel, the birds have to first bond with the humans and build enough trust so that they’re willing to learn from them.
Chicks are removed from their breeding colonies when they are just a few days old and taken to an aviary that is overseen by scientists.
Then, they will teach the birds the migration routes by sitting on the back of a microlight aircraft piloted by Fritz, waving and shouting through a bullhorn as the birds fly. The birds follow the aircraft as it soars over hills and meadows.
The effort was inspired by the naturalist “Father Goose” Bill Lishman. In 1988, he taught Canadian geese to fly alongside his lightweight plane.
Later, he led endangered whooping cranes through safe routes and founded a nonprofit known as “Operation Migration.”
Fritz’s guidance has proved to be successful. In 2011, the first northern bald ibis migrated back to Bavaria, Germany, from Tuscany.
Since then, more birds have flown the approximately 342-mile route each year. By 2028, the team hopes that the Central European population will have more than 350 birds and become self-sustaining.
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