Hams and Monitoring Enthusiasts Needed
To Help Researchers

On 11 July 2007, e-mail arrived from Joe Crowley of the Department of Integrative Biology at University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada.

"Wildlife Preservation Canada, Dr. Ryan Norris at the University of Guelph, and Dr. Bridget Stutchbury at York University are collaborating on a project to radio-track migrating Loggerhead Shrikes from one of their breeding colonies in Ontario to their wintering grounds. The Loggerhead Shrike is a fascinating bird that, despite being a songbird, is also a bird of prey and often impales its prey on hawthorn spines, barbed wire fences, or other sharp objects. This bird, once common throughout Canadian grasslands, is now critically endangered and only a few dozen individuals remain in the wild. In 2001, Wildlife Preservation Canada began a captive breeding and release program in Ontario. In 2007, we are radio-tracking shrikes to monitor their survival and dispersal patterns and to identify migration routes and wintering grounds. Although hundreds of birds have been successfully reared and released in Ontario, few have returned in consecutive years. Very little is known about these birds once they leave Ontario, and this research will allow us to better assess the success of the captive-breeding program and help to identify migration routes and wintering grounds.

"Almost nothing is known about the migration routes and the over-wintering location of Ontario’s Loggerhead Shrikes, however, it is believed that Ontario birds fly south through the eastern USA toward Florida and other southern states. We greatly appreciate the help of any individuals that are able to monitor the frequencies of our birds along their migratory route and in their potential wintering grounds. If you locate a bird, please record the radio tag frequency, the exact location and, if the bird is visible, the color and order of the bands on each leg."

UPDATE received 9/10/07:   "We have 16 Eastern Loggerhead Shrikes with radio transmitters that have been bred in captivity and released in the Carden plain alvar in Ontario. These birds also have green-colored leg bands. Over the last few weeks, the birds have dispersed from the release site. We don't have any information on suspected migration paths or stopover sites, but expect them to head south from Ontario toward Florida However, they may overwinter somewhere north of Florida. If you hear one of our birds, please record the GPS location and the frequency of the transmitter and send e-mail to the Biotrackers list (see below). We've already learned a great deal about the shrike's dispersal and habitat use in Ontario and, with your help, look forward to uncovering some information about their migration routes and overwintering grounds."

UPDATE received 12/6/07:   "Unfortunately, we weren't able to track any shrikes during their migration. However, we did get some great dispersal and survival data, which was the focus of our project anyway. It would have been great to track them during migration, but this was more of a pilot study to just test the methods for tracking the shrikes so we weren't really set up that well to be able to track them during migration anyway. If the study happens again in the future, there will be more emphasis on trying to track the migration. The transmitters actually have a longer life than we initially thought and are 6 to 8 months. Monitoring for overwintering birds should be concentrated in Tennessee and North Carolina, and in states of that."

Frequency List (Mhz):

172.0989   172.1140   172.1400   172.1530   172.1615   172.2550   172.2753
172.2975   172.3003   172.3144   172.3707   172.3925   172.4372   172.6609
172.7020   172.7370

FINAL UPDATE:   Radio tag batteries were expected to last until mid-March 2008, so this study is concluded for the current season. No further monitoring is needed.