There is a bird called the hidden ibis (Geronticus eremita), the size of a goose, with a bald head and a huge mouth. In a word, ugly. However, it also has a feature that is endangered.
In order to survive the winter in Europe, this bird needs to migrate south in winter and spend the winter in warmer places.
There are always dangers along the way, so 20 years ago, Austrian biologist Johannes Fritz did something really cool—flying a modified Slow ultralight aircraft guide the birds to learn a new, safer migratory route.
It was 2004. After some bumpy experiments, Mr. Fritz led the ibis to fly from Austria to Italy for the first time, and the migration was successful.
Since then, he has organized a total of 15 times and guided 277 ibises to complete the migration.
Many hidden ibis not only memorized the route he taught, but also taught the route to the next generation of hidden ibis babies.
However, 20 years later, due to climate warming, the temperature of Lake Constance in Austria, where the crested ibises summer, has risen. For migratory birds, this means that the signal that triggers their migration has been delayed.
10 years ago, the hidden ibis would start flying south at the end of September, and 10 years later, the hidden ibis would not start flying south until the end of October.
That means they won't be able to reach the Alps until November, when the rising thermals in the Alps are too weak, and there are terrible snowstorms, which start to make it difficult for the birds to fly, and the soil in the mountains has been frosted, Makes it difficult to find food.
Fritz's team had to trap the hungry ibis one by one, pack them in air-permeable boxes, and drive them over the mountains.
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But the personal trainer service that came once a year was obviously not feasible, so he decided to find another safe migration route for the birds.
The route he planned can bypass the Alps. Although it is three times longer than the previous route, and the time-consuming will be extended from two weeks to six weeks, the ibis should be able to complete the flight.
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Fritz is now retraining the ibis to fly with the plane, and when fall comes, he will take dozens of ibis with him.
They will no longer fly to Tuscany under the bright sun, but first fly west to France, then south to the Mediterranean, and then along the long and winding coastline to Andalusia in southern Spain.
This is one of the hottest and driest regions in Europe, where the ibis will survive the harsh winter.
The article comes from a report in the "New York Times" this month. It's cool to be able to do a particularly meaningful thing in your life!
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/18/world/europe/johannes-fritz-ibises-migration.html
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