September is quail hunting season in Burgenland. The Common Quail, which is classified as “near threatened” in Europe, is also experiencing a downward trend in Austria with an estimated 2,500-5,000 calling males. Over the past two years, over 500 quails were shot in Burgenland (mainly in the three districts of Güssing, Neusiedl/See and Oberpullendorf) each year, although the hunting season only lasts one month. These (relatively high) numbers as well as several reports of (illegal!) playback lures during this period suggest that some hunters are using prohibited methods to attract the birds. We need your help to assess the extent of this illegal practice: as birds should not be calling persistently in September, we ask you to listen out for such calls and report these observations to us. This can be done via ornitho.at (please use the keyword “Klangattrappe” in the comment) or directly via our reporting channels for wildlife crime (birdcrime.at).

Many thanks for your assistance!

Photo: L. Bucher, ornitho.at

Are you planning a visit to other European countries in the near future? Your observations can be a valuable help to fill gaps in the coverage of the new European Breeding Birds Atlas, particular in east and south-east European countries. On the EBCC website you can find guidelines on how to report your observations. For additional questions please contact Verena Keller. If you plan to record your observations using the soon to be released ornitho app (for Android-smartphones only!), please contact our Biolovision support for a pre-release version. Are you currently planning a trip for next year? The atlas coordination team under Petr Vorisek is happy to provide you with more information!

Many thanks for your support!

Verena Keller

Chair of the Atlas Steering Committee

During the past months quite a few users were already able to test the new ornitho-app for smartphones. A lot of records have already been entered successfully. Currently, some minor problems are still being solved. The app will be officially available in a few weeks. Right now we would like to inform all potential users, that until further notice the ornitho-app will only be available for android smartphones (version 2.3 and higher). We will inform you here as soon as the app is generally available over Google Play.