EMPLOYEES OF THE PROFESSIONAL SERVICES UNIT OF THE PUBLIC INSTITUTION PRIRODA PARTICIPATED IN A BIRD-RINGING SCHEME AT THE BRIJUNI NATIONAL PARK

A bird-ringing scheme under the patronage of the Brijuni
National Park was carried out on the outer islets of the Brijuni Islands
on 14 April 2008. The birds ringed belong to a colony of Mediterranean
Shags (Phalacrocorax aristotelis ssp. desmarestii). Andrej Radalj and
Boris Ende of Rijeka, authorised bird-ringers and associates of the Institute
for Ornithology of HAZU, were instrumental in initiating the scheme. This
is the second year that they have ringed Mediterranean Shags on the Brijuni
Islands. The employees of the Professional Services Unit of the Public
Institution Priroda were provided the opportunity of participating in
the ringing scheme as a part of their training activities. This year,
a large population of Mediterranean Shags was discovered on two small
islands of the Brijuni archipelago. Young birds, still unable to fly,
together with one adult female, were ringed at the nest. A total of 30
birds were ringed. Each bird was marked with a metal ring and a field-readable
plastic marker that will enable the birds to be identified from a distance.
The Mediterranean Shag is important to the ornithofauna of the Primorsko-Goranska
County. The number of these birds in the Kvarner islands is estimated
at about 350 nesting pairs. The experience acquired in this ringing scheme
will be of great help in future activities in protecting the areas that
are inhabited by the Mediterranean Shag in the Primorsko-Goranska County.