We create great snipe habitats based on the newest knowledge
Great snipe is a fascinating species, which has so far been little known. Thanks to the telemetry technology, we can accurately track its movements, habitat preferences, and even migration routes and wintering areas. It is thanks to research that we can find out what environmental factors are suitable for the great snipe. This is important for shaping habitats and for ensuring adequately designed agri-environmental programs available to farmers. Our research results are also used in management plans for national parks and Natura 2000 areas.
Your support will ensure that the protection of the great snipe in Poland will be conducted on a basis of thorough knowledge of the species to ensure a more effective use of the areas in which it occurs.
Your support will ensure that the protection of the great snipe in Poland will be conducted on a basis of thorough knowledge of the species to ensure a more effective use of the areas in which it occurs.
Our research programmeResearch on breeding biology, seasonal movements and habitat preferences of females
Research conducted in Poland and in the world on the great snipe biology focused mainly on males. This was due to the fact that females are a very difficult object of research. First of all, they are very difficult to find in the field. The nest is well hidden in herbaceous vegetation and the female is very difficult to flash from the nest (average disturbance distance 0.7 m). This caused a huge gap in the knowledge about breeding biology of female great snipe, which is the missing link necessary to plan comprehensive and effective protection of the species.
As part of this research topic, we plan to equip females with GPS-GSM transmitters or satellite tags to determine their location with an accuracy of several meters. Ornithologists will assess the type of habitat, measure the structure of vegetation, humidity and assess the land use in the vicinity of nests. Transmitters necessary to locate nests are very expensive. We expect the total cost of this task to be around 260,000 PLN, of which the partners' own contribution is PLN 44,000 PLN Determining the home range, habitat preferences and suitable types of land use for great snipe
Great snipe is a species displaying in groups during the night, doesn't form pairs and is very secretive. Records of great snipe outside of the breeding season are very rare and practically impossible because of its cryptic plumage. Therefore, its habitat preferences cannot be assessed without the latest telemetry technologies, i.e. GPS transmitters. This equipment is expensive however, it provides a huge amount of data required to assess habitat needs (type of land use and vegetation communities) as well as the size of utilised areas under changing habitat conditions in different years.
This study will allow to find out the size of the lek area (total individual home range of many males around a given lek) and the types of grassland use conducive to maintaining great snipe habitat in good conservation status in important and previously not studies habitat types in which the species occurs in Poland. We will determine the necessary size of the protection area and the mosaic of appropriate land use that will ensure the permanent existence of the population. The total cost of this study is 583,000 PLN, of which the partners' own contribution for which we are seeking co-funding is 94,640 PLN Assessment of the micro-habitat selection of the great snipe and food resources on peatlands
Cryptic species (coloration that gives them camouflage) and habitat specialists choose foraging places with great care, because it must provide them with both the right amount of food resources and a protection from predators. These places are very specific and can be different for different types of habitats. In order to plan favourable land use for great snipes, it is necessary to know what features of habitats are exactly at the place where the birds are feeding (micro-scale). This require measuring the features of the habitat in real time when the birds are feeding.
In order to determine the micro-habitat selectivity ornithologists will search for feeding sites of great snipes and then carry out measurements of habitat parameters (vegetation structure, humidity, soil softness, etc.), record the land use and collect soil samples for analysis of soil invertebrates that are potential food for the great snipe. The total cost of this task is 153,000 PLN, of which we are seeking co-funding up to 26,000 PLN. Further contact
Michał Korniluk Tel: +48 500 011 856 Email: michal.korniluk@natura-international.org.pl |