Oksana is a female Short-eared Owl tagged whilst wintering in Malta in February 2025. It left Malta in March when she migrated to Russia via Sicily, mainland Italy, across the Adriatic to Albania, Kosova, Serbia, Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine. It also crossed into Kazakhstan for some days before continuing north-east back into Russian territory.

Project Information

Research on the Short-eared Owl population of Malta

The main objective of this project is to research the Short-eared Owl's population, an annex 1 species, that migrates through, winters and occasionally also breeds in Malta. Understanding how such sensitive, nocturnal predators make use of the archipelago for hunting, resting and breeding is important to better protect important areas from various pressures. Different aspects of the owls’ ecology will be studied, including: estimation and monitoring of the migratory and wintering population size through observation and scientific bird ringing, the use of different habitats and micro-habitats for hunting and roosting throughout seasons via the use of gps-tracking devices which will...

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Telemetry Device Information

OrniTrack-E9 4G transmitter was fitted using a teflon backpack harness. The E (elevated solar panel) version of this tag weighs approx 10g, despite the name '9'. The panel's elevation helps in reducing the amount of feathers covering the panel and preventing charging.

Read more on Ornitela's page: https://www.ornitela.com/10g-transmitter