Since 2018, the staff of the Greek Ornithological Society has been tracking a solitary male White-tailed Hawk. crow who was nesting alone Meteora. Asproparis is the number 1 endangered species in Greece and the number 1 endangered bird in the Balkans and Europe.
In about 30 years, the Balkans have lost 80% of their population in the Balkans, returning to Greece every year, and efforts to rescue them and track them via GPS are paying off.
Confirming the good news in April, the Ornithological Society wrote: “So our beloved ‘Bachelor of Meteors’, whom we have watched alone for six years, hoping to find a mate, is no longer alone this year.”
Two crows and a crow
News of the birth of a Griffon Vulture chick has given new hope to scientists, volunteers and residents of the regions who study, monitor and protect Europe’s No. 1 endangered bird species. Dadia seeing one of its ecosystemslast summer will turn to ashes.
Asproparis is the smallest of the four crow species found in Greece. It is distinguished by its smaller size, but also by its white feathers, black feathers on the tips of its wings, orange face and white feathery mane. It is monogamous and nests in the same place every year. Only if his partner dies, he finds another, and the truth is that it is not easy. This Asproparis is about 17 years old.
In Greek territory, it is also found under other names such as Asproparis, Astraparis, Asprogypas, Lefkogypas, Mikro Ornio, Batzoutiera, Skanitis, Koukkalogo (Epirus), Kaliatzaris (Thrace), Tyrokomos (Thessaly, Kozani). The crow is an apex predator and is considered a scavenger of forests. The disappearance of the vulture also means an increase in infectious diseases in the ecosystem, as vultures feed on dead animals. However, the asproparis also engages in live prey, making it a rarer vulture species.
Like all scavenger bird species, the greatest threat to crows is poisoned feed. About three months after hatching, the chick will first be able to perform test flights, then fly from the nest and finally migrate. Naturally, the species has a very high mortality rate for its young, as only 1 in 7 survive. The biggest risk is that, because they have no experience of migration, they choose a route over the Mediterranean Sea, where there is no opportunity to stop, and they drown