The Mod Squad
The next morning the trapping squad managed to examine another Cotton Pygmy Goose, two Northern Shovelers, four Ruddy Shelducks, and a Fulvous whistling duck. Our goal was to affix satellite transmitters to five of the birds for further tracking purposes. The team successfully tagged and released the waterfowl and we snapped lots of pictures to capture the moment.
The Ruddy Shelduck pictured here shows how the transmitter is carefully attached to the bird without causing it harm. Our colleague Enam is an amazing photographer and has several books published with his work. We are all looking forward to seeing how he captured the successful tagging event.
As you can imagine, satellite tags are extremely expensive, but vitally necessary to understand migratory routes and flyways. A single satellite tag including tracking services costs about $5,000 so our team is very careful in tagging procedures. There are so many factors that are beyond our control once the bird takes flight that we cross our fingers in hopes that we will receive solid data to bolster our research efforts. The migratory flyways of Southeast Asia are not nearly as defined as they are in the U.S. so the data we will receive will not only help us with avian influenza research but also provide valuable information for other studies.
The locations of these ducks are reported back to our collaborators at U.S. Geologic Services and then the data is posted on Google Earth and updated daily so we can follow the bird's movements. Follow this link http://www.werc.usgs.gov/sattrack/bangladesh/maps.html to track some of the waterfowl we've tagged so far! To view the locations run the file by clicking on the globe icon on the site. You must have Google Earth installed on your system first. Click here to download Google Earth for free. Follow these birds daily and you'll be amazed by the amount of territory they cover. The satellite transmitters can operate for more that a year if all goes well - we hope to follow our feathered friends for a good long time.
Later that afternoon as we were winding down, I caught sight of a large Fish Eagle swooping down into the reeds. The Fish Eagle emerged with its prey secured in its fierce-looking talons. The bird settled about 250 yards away from us across the mudflat. A few of us decided to take a closer look and we proceeded cautiously across the mudflat. I learned that the mudflat can be tricky to traverse as I unintentionally plunged my right foot into a deep, muddy hole. I was lucky to escape with my shoe as it was encased in thick, gloppy mud up to my shin. With all this commotion, the Fish Eagle took flight again with its prey and for a moment lost its grip on its meal. In mid-flight the Fish Eagle recaptured the prey it was an amazing feat of aerial prowess.
Reporting from Bangladesh, EcoHealth Alliance scientist Kurt Vandegrift is working toward monitoring highly pathogenic Avian influenza in wild migratory waterfowl.