Kalkoengieren, Lammergieren en Zeearenden

Since late April 2000, a Turkey Vulture Cathartes aura has been observed at several sites in The Netherlands, i.e. Monster, Zwolle, Texel and Wieringen. At two such sites, it was noted that the bird did not wear rings or other artificial markings. The bird at Wieringen was seen on 13 May 2000, while foraging on a freshly dead sheep; it tried to penetrate the head through the eye sockets. At Mallnitz, in the Austrian Alps, two juvenile Bearded Vultures Gypaetus barbatus were released at an artificial nest in May 2000. These birds are part of a WWFproject to re-establish this species, started in 1986. Since 1997, several Bearded Vultures turned up in the lowlands of The Netherlands; these birds originated from similar reintroduction projects in the Alps and have a small chance of survival. The colonization of Austria by White-tailed Eagles Haliaeetus albicilla was frustrated in 2000 by poisoning incidents in winter 1999/2000 (involving three birds) and road accidents (two).