The University of Life Sciences in Poznań has won a grant of more than PLN 1.6 million for the project “Foraging on waste by migratory birds: cost or profit?”. The project aims to investigate the impact of anthropogenic food sources on the behaviour and health of a migratory bird species – the white stork.
The research will be conducted over three years. White storks, as an excellent model species, will be analysed for the short- and long-term consequences of using anthropogenic food sources. The project will study differences in the behaviour of birds foraging in natural areas, agricultural areas and on landfill sites.
The project will monitor stork populations, assess breeding conditions, study nestling health and analyse the impact of foraging on landfill sites on various aspects of bird life. Modern technologies will be used – photo traps, GPS-GPRS-ACC transmitters, iButtons and analysis of telomere DNA segment shortening.
