Avian resilience and adaptation through Awareness monitoring, Treatment, and Outreach for Raptors – AVIATOR

Raptors, as well as other wild fauna, are highly susceptible to a range of infectious diseases. Avian influenza, West Nile virus, and numerous other pathogens can significantly influence population dynamics, and in certain regions may precipitate pronounced declines in specific populations. Moreover, some infectious agents can exert more severe impacts on captive raptor populations, primarily due to restricted genetic diversity.

Given that infectious diseases represent a tangible threat to free-ranging individuals, investigating the interactions between pathogens and raptors is of critical importance for the development of evidence-based management and disease prevention strategies. Systematic monitoring and comprehensive understanding of the potential impacts of infectious diseases on these species should constitute an integral component of broader regional conservation initiatives.

Accordingly, the principal aim of this project is to enhance the resilience and adaptive capacity of raptor populations in the Danube region in the context of climate change, through the implementation of coordinated and harmonized measures for the prevention of infectious diseases within wild avian populations, thereby mitigating adverse effects on regional biodiversity.

Throughout the project, targeted surveillance of infectious diseases in raptors will be conducted, with a particular emphasis on flaviviruses. Additionally, pilot vaccination programs will be implemented for captive raptors against West Nile virus, coupled with entomological monitoring to assess flavivirus prevalence in mosquito vectors.