The American rarities arrived!

Yesterday afternoon, we had the first sighting of a Semipalmated Sandpiper (Calidris pusilla) just returning from his long migratory journey that begun in North America and ended in Europe. Soon, the usual bird watching tourists will also come to spot these rarities on Corvo.

One more recent sighting

Yesterday, Sunday, on 04 September were observed three individuals of sanderling, Calidris alba. The migratory cycle of birds starts to be more visible. Bring your binoculars and reach rarities!

Seabird predation by cat

After three years of project and countless failed attempts, this pictures show what the team feared and what the project wants to counter. Words for what? The video speaks for itself. Now is expected that this confirmation will promote the importance of seabirds conservation.

Corvo's Honeymoon visible in all browsers

Now the http://cagarro.spea.pt site that emits live Corvo's Honeymoon nest, was redesigned and enhanced to be visible in all browsers. We had technical problems with the ActiveX software reading in Firefox and Internet Explorer. Fortunately we can now follow the Cory's Shearwater development on any computer!

We have already 22,994 visits from 77 different countries, this shows the true interest of the population about this bird.

We restored ten Manx Shearwaters

During this time of the year, Manx Shearwaters (Puffinus puffinus) chicks begin to leave their nest. During the night they are attracted by urban lights, which causes them to fall to the ground, mainly along roads and by the ports. As a way to prevent the birds from being preyed on or even run over, our team make our rounds every night in search of fallen birds. We would like to thank the community in Corvo for all their support with this initiative. We have already restored ten Manx Shearwaters to full health and sent them off to sea. Our rounds will continue and we will work to make this a record year!

Cat visits the "Corvo's honeymoon" nest

Following the first nest predation on the "Corvo's honeymoon", were taked new security measures. We placed a motion detection camera to film the entrance of the nest. Were recorded several observations of this cat near the chick. Fortunately he decided to abandon it, perhaps because the tight access. Each day that pass the bird will become larger and the chances of being predated decrease. Hopefully it goes well!

Parent feeds the chick

After the first nest predation on "Corvo Honeymoon," our team set up the surveillance system in another nest. Now we can follow even closer this Cory's Shearwater family in a burrow. In the video below we can see the parent feeding is chick on is most natural and spontaneous behavior. Many moments of the bird growth will be displayed. Stay tuned ...

Another cory's shearwater returned to Nature

Today, another Cory's Shearwater returned to nature. It was found in a well from wich it could not leave. Fortunately the local community is used to work with us and they promptly told us that the bird was trapped. After the rescue, it spent the night resting in a box created for the S.O.S. Cagarro program, which is completing 10 years of activity, and was finally returned this morning to the stormy seas of Corvo island.

The scale model of Corvo arrived

The environmental interpretation center received last friday the island model. The center is being equiped by the Corvo Island Natural Park and SPEA with a new exhibition to promote the natural wonders of this island, the model was the first piece.

It will allow the tourists and residents visit throughout the island, even the most inaccessible places. When the weather does not permit a tour, this new model will be a great tool of divulgation.

Here we see the team that helped to carry the model from the "Porto da Casa" harbour to the interpretation center after a deserved rest.

The new greenhouse look

Due to the high temperatures inside the greenhouse during these summer months, the plants inside it required special treatment. We weeded each plant one by one, and placed them outside to expose them to more natural temperatures with shorter periods of sun exposure.

“Lua de Mel no Corvo” nest was predated

During the night between the 30th - 31st of July, the Cory's Shearwater chick that we were following with a webcam on the webpage “Lua de Mel no Corvo” was predated. The other two nests that were in the same barn also lost their chicks. This is a critical developmental period for the Cory's Shearwater nestlings, as they are particularly vulnerable to predators that decimate seabird colonies during this time.

The above photo depicts a predated chick at the entrance of the barn where was located the nest that we were following on the page http://cagarro.spea.pt . All the chicks were preyed upon by a domestic cat that was captured in photos from our video surveillance.

This event just proves the importance of continuing with our project “Safe Islands for Seabirds - LIFE07 NAT/P/000649 and upon completion, the necessity for project partners to develop an effective plan to control predators on the island.

"Recovery of Atlantic Habitats" Exhibition

We are proud to show the work done at Corvo island and at Vila Franca do Campo islet, integrated in the "Save Islands for Seabirds" LIFE project, through an photographic exhibition entitled "Recovery of Atlantic Habitats".

The exhibition will be at the Priolo Environmental Center (http://www.centropriolo.com) in São Miguel island until August 15.

Completion of the high altitude biological reserve fence

We are building an electric fence in the High Altitude Biological Reserve. This area has more than 10ha large and it is used in the scope of the project by agreement with the "Comisssão dos Baldios" (The committee for the management of the public lands).

The grazing of the cattle in this area destroyed the natural vegetation cover, and the fence that we had in place so far still had some places where the cattle could get in.

This fence with more than 2 km long is being improved and will prevent the entrance of the cattle and thus protect the recovery of the vegetation.

The works are going at a good rhythm and we hope to close the area in a few days.

The chick was born

In the afternoon of the 24th of July, the little Cory's shearwater was born in the nest followed at the site "Lua de Mel no Corvo" (http://cagarro.spea.pt). Everything is ok and we will closely follow its development.

The beginning of the seed collection period!

Pelagic birdwatching

On July 7 I joined a fishing boat to do pelagic birdwatching. The day was excellent weather and a calm sea. We could observe hundreds of birds, from different species, the species that stood out were:

1 - Puffinus puffinus

2 - Puffinus gravis

3 - Puffinus griseus

4 - Calonectris diomedea borealis

Charismatic moments

Follow the most charismatic moments of "Lua de Mel no Corvo", through this YouTube channel:

Lua de Mel no Corvo

Stay tuned for new videos ...

First Common Tern chicks born in Corvo

Hello, my name is Michelle and I arrived in Corvo last Friday on the 11th of June.

I’m originally from Singapore, but now I am doing a Master’s in Conservation Science in Britain. My master’s thesis involves the development of an acoustic monitoring method to estimate the number of nesting shearwaters and part of this work will be conducted on Corvo.

We currently have four ARUs (automated recording units) deployed around the Azores, with two on Corvo. Every night over the next two months, the ARUs will record the calls of the Cory Shearwaters as they fly into their colony. I will then use a computer program analyse the recordings to determine the frequency (the number of calls per night) from each ARU.

The ARUs will be placed in sites with different density of shearwaters burrows. I will have to count all the burrows in a 25 radius circle around the ARU to get the number of the nesting population to determine the density of the site. I will then see if there is a relationship between the calling frequency of the ARU and the burrow density surrounding them.

If all goes right, there will be a higher frequency of calls around a colony with more birds. We hope to develop this acoustic monitoring method to get accurate estimates on endangered seabirds populations in the future. Many seabirds nest in inaccessible areas, or only fly in at night which makes it hard to conduct traditional censusing. Hopefully in the future we will be able to put out ARUs and get a better idea of endangered seabird populations.

We were on the islet

On the 2nd – 4th of June we were on Vila Franco do Campo islet to monitor Cory’s Shearwater nests.

Of 284 of the initially identified potential nests, 63 (22.18%) were occupied and 181 (63.73%) showed some evidence of being occupied. At this stage in Corvo, almost 50% of couples have already laid an egg. Only 1 artificial nest was occupied and 8 have the potential to be occupied.

Since Vila Franca do Campo islet does not have introduced predators, it is important to investigate the Cory’s Shearwater breeding success to provide a comparison with an island with predators. We will also determine natural mortality on our next visit to be held during the hatching period.

Was also carried out reed control on the western slope of the isle. Vegetation and invertebrate’s surveys using pit-falls traps were conducted and compared with the results from Spring.

Finally, were used wax blocks with peanut butter to confirm the absence of rodents.

We participate in Eco-escolas Project

On June 6th, 17 teachers from five different nationalities and nine students from the School Mouzinho da Silveira joined us to carry out a birdwatching day. The activity falls within the scope of the project Eco-Schools, which is an international initiative that aims to recognize the good work carried out by the school. Participants were inspired not only by the beautiful landscapes along the trail call "Cara do ìndio", but also for the unique opportunity to see a cagarro to incubate the egg in the nest.

The Azorean Laurustinus germinated

In September 2009 we collected seeds of the endemic Azorean Laurustinus, Viburnum subcordatum and after nearly two years, in March 2011 the first plants have germinated in our greenhouse.

Corvo Honeymoon

A new site on the internet is born, which allow us to follow closely the behavior of a couple in the nest. The Cory's Shearwater is the most common seabird of the Azores. They spend is life on sea and only return to land for nesting.

In the village of Corvo Island, our team mounted a video surveillance system that allow to monitor by the first time, the most symbolic moments of this bird reproduction. Join us until November, the time which juveniles ventured into the sea.

http://cagarro.spea.pt

This project is under development and still a 1.3 beta version, however, is constantly updated.

Good visit!

Little shearwater visit us

On May 30, we received a visitor who needed some care. It was a Little shearwater - Puffinus assimilis, which was found in the surroundings of Corvo’s church

(Sandra Hervías and Pedro Geraldes ringing the bird)

Our team cleaned the bird wounds, ring it and return it to nature on the next night.

(Video still captured at the release time)

DOP researcher came to Corvo

Verónica Neves visited Corvo in the past weekend. She is a researcher of the Oceanography and Fisheries Department from Azores University. She was in Corvo to monitor the Tern colonies, and she took the oportunity to give a talk about these birds within the scope of the campaign "Açores Entre Mares". This lecture took place in the Cultural and Environmental Interpretation Center, and several Corvo inhabitants showed up and were interested.

Seasonal variation of cat activity around the Cory's Shearwater colonies

"Does feral cat activity explain variation in nest survival of Cory’s Shearwaters on Corvo?" is the study provided by Cowen Honor student, as part of her master's thesis at the University of Cambridge, UK, coordinated by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB).

The data set of cat activity, using automatic cameras and transect to detect feces around the Cory's Shearwater colonies were analyzed during one reproductive cycle. Preliminary results indicate that the current methodology can not be used to explain variations in nest survival. In order to explain the observed variation in nesting success, probably, the cameras should be placed for a period longer than 2 weeks, at the same local. The study is available for download in PDF format on the official website of the project (life-corvo.spea.pt).

On behalf of the entire team, we'd like to sincerely thank to our volunteers who give their time day after day, processing thousands of photographs, without which this work would not have been possible.

Common Snipe nest (Gallinago gallinago) at Caldeirão

SPEA team increased!

On last May 4, the "Science Club" students joined the SPEA team. They learned about the field work development by the "Save Islands for Seabirds" project.

The activity held at Corvo Biological Reserve, where they could learn about the artificial nests monitoring, of Cory's Shearwater, Manx Shearwater, Storm Petrel and Little Shearwater. Learned also to use materials and techniques for rodents catching. Concluding with the various endemic species planting process.

After the well studied lesson, groups of eleven students explained to the camera what they were doing in SPEA team. The video from the activity will be displayed in the future.

Pedro Coelho visits Corvo

The chairman of SPEA General Assembly, Pedro Coelho, visited the project installations on the Corvo island and had a guided tour to the Cauldron, last weekend.

Peter was surprised by the amount of Cory's Shearwater that he observe when approached to the island. We are all grateful for your visit.

See you soon...

Endemic flora shows up!

And with spring – endemics plants, lots of them! We came across this little fellow called “(Azorean) forget-me-not” Myosotis maritima during this week’s fieldwork. It’s an Azorean endemism protected under the Berne Convention and the Habitat Directive.

The work continues

Hi folks. Today I want to tell you how our working week went. We spent an important part of our time in the greenhouse, where production of heather required transplanting a large number of plants. On the other hand, we also worked in the Biological Reserve Corvo with a great team, planting Azorean Heather. The plantation required a good job to ensure the survival of plants. Thus, we were careful to ensure that everything was fine. The work of mapping the island continued, which is taking us to travel to all corners of the Corvo island. Later and at the office, all the information regarding the species of interest is recorded in a GIS database.

The control of invasive species is important and that’s why we carry a spray herbicide on the African Tamrisk in the natural reserve. Our goal was to prevent the growth of saplings of invasive species and promote conditions for growth of plants placed there.

Besides the rain that has elapsed, we fished our first mackerel. One of it decided to fish the fishing rod of our work manager. It flew towards the sea and was never seen again until the next day when it was caught by another fisherman.

See you next time.

Sónia Serrano

We already have Azorian Picconia!

New volunteers

Hello. We are Sonia and Angel and we arrive from Spain last 31st March.

We will help SPEA on mapping alien plants species and managing the plant nursery.

We are enjoying and hope to develop a good job.

Adios

Sonia e Angel.

Fourth Project Public Meeting

The fourth project public meeting took place on March 22 and had an audience of around 10% of the population. We show a video about the construction of anti-predator fence, which will be built in the Biological Reserve, and we give people the opportunity to clarify doubts about

To appeal to young public, the students of the Mouzinho da Silveira School took part in "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" competition, and they answered questions about the project.

Forest International Year

Last Monday we celebrate the Forest International Year. We join about 70 people and we began to plant endemics in Corvo Biological Reserve. Apart from the curious Corvo inhabitants, were there SPEA staff, the mayor of Corvo City Hall and students of the Mouzinho da Silveira School. The Director Affairs of the Sea was also there.

Everyone had the opportunity to plant a endemic species. The sums of all plants were 170 endemic plants. Many of these plants were produced by students in the project greenhouse.
This action was part of executive committee programme.

The project has already good outputs and some of them are recorded in Jose Serra Documentary (RTP Açores). You can check it out HERE.

WEBMAP

It´s online the LIFE Project webmap. Check it out HERE.
ID/Password: spea/spea

This site is under construction and will be dynamic. Every week new information will be uploaded:
- location of rodent trapping
- location of Cory's Shearwater nests monitoring
- density of invasive mammals
- location of plantation of endemic species

In the end of the year will be available the habitat maps and the maps of the invasive plants from Corvo Island.
The Vila Franca do Campo Islet wasn't forgotten and the webmap will be available very soon.

Any suggestion or commentary should be submitted to carlos.silva@spea.pt

A one year study of the abundance of rodents is completed

We completed the annual monitoring of rodents last February. The objective was to know its monthly abundance in four study areas at two different altitudes. We used the "capture-recapture" technique to estimate the index of abundance, seasonal variations and vital areas.

The results indicate that the density of rodents in Corvo may be influenced by the altitude, in general, higher densities were obtained at low altitudes. The highest abundance was observed in November in all areas for both captured species domestic mouse Mus musculus and black rat Rattus rattus.

Based on these first results, we aim to continue the captures at different habitats during the autumn and early winter in 2011, to obtain a sample of the most pronounced variations.

We'll continue to give updates on this work.

Suitable Habitat for Cory's Shearwater Breeding

Eva Immler is an investigator from Van Hall Larenstein, University of Applied Sciences. She was last year in Corvo mapping and characterizing the suitable habitat of the Bird of the Year - Cory´s Shearwater. The investigator approach was image capture and GIS processing.

The new innovative method was tested in April and we already have the first results.

The most suitable habitat for the Cory's Shearwater is characterized by: steep inclination, no tree cover, scarce cover vegetation, broken rock and shallow soil.

We hope in a near future this technique will be tested in all the cliffs of Corvo Island.

Her work can be downloaded HERE.

Thank you Eva

Plantation in Vila Franca Islet

In the Islet the work continues...

During the last days were planted about 3440 trees. The sum of plants on Vila Franca Islet are 7950 plants.

This year let contribute to a greener year. Plant a tree.
Year 2011 - International Year of Forests