CABS | Honey buzzards shot down in northern Lebanon.

Описание: Back in October 2022, during peak autumn migration, together with our partners from the Society for the Protection of Nature in Lebanon (SPNL) and MESHC Anti-Poaching Unit, a CABS team was active in the northern Lebanese district of Miniyeh-Danniyeh - an important migratory ‘bottleneck’ and infamous poaching hotspot for illegal killing of protected migratory birds. Illegal shooting is one of the main threats against a whole manner of species as they head south towards their wintering grounds in sub-Saharan Africa. While conducting a routine field search, our teams recording the illegal shooting of two beautiful honeys buzzards within minutes of arriving on site. Over the course of the campaign our teams were able to recover more than two dozen birds of prey with gunshot wounds and nurse a large proportion back to health. We have been conducting anti-poaching operations in the region each spring and autumn since 2017 and the situation has already improved. Nevertheless, as evident in our footage, there is still much work to be done with regards to both education and enforcement.

While honey buzzards spend the winter in central and southern Africa, preparations for the upcoming spring bird protection camp in Lebanon are well underway. From the end of March until mid-April our teams will be present in the Lebanon Mountains to monitor the passage of raptors and storks.