With the spring and summer months behind us, the time has come to take stock of the reproductive season just passed by analyzing the data from the ornithological station of I take to the Stillo. The monitoring was developed using several techniques: on sight for waterfowl and through censuses of singing, capturing and ringing of small ornithic species with particular reference to passerines. The interpolation of the various techniques yields a more or less real photograph of the progress of the breeding season within the marshy area under study. The late spring-summer period was characterized by constant rainfall, which made it possible to maintain a rather high water regime throughout the spring and most of the summer.
This abundance of water has had the effect of clearly delaying the growth of the various shrub species, and in particular of the reeds, with different consequences on the settlement of the various bird species. If on the one hand the aquatic species were favored by these conditions, the passerines more closely linked to the reeds have instead suffered. This year the clear and canals of the area subject to hunting ban have hosted from March until the beginning of August, a substantial number of water birds far higher than those recorded in previous years. All of this means that the challenging environmental improvements are actually starting to pay off. In addition to the nesting species such as the Mallard and the Coot present in truly considerable numbers, and for which 110 units are registered for the former and over 400 for the latter, numerous other species have also frequented the area.
With more or less consistent numbers, depending on the period and the water level, the complete list of observed species is as follows: Garganey, Teal, Shoveler, Tufted duck, Great crested grebe, Lesser grebe, Little grebe, Herring gull, Black-headed gull , Cormorant, Gray Heron, Great White Heron, Night Heron, Squacco Heron, Purple Heron, Bittern, Little Bittern, Sacred Ibis, Glossy Lizard, White Stork, Spatula, Snipe, Lapwing, Pantana, Redshank, Pyro Pyro, Pyro Wheatear, White Pyro woodland, black-tailed godwit, fighter, marsh harrier and harrier. To the animals closely linked to the aquatic environment, we must also add the species that frequent the marsh area to find nocturnal shelter in the reeds during migration or that use the area for foraging and nesting. From the censuses conducted by singing and sight, the presence of numerous species was recorded, proving the importance of this area as a resting and nesting place.
The abundance of migratory and nesting birds at certain times offered a show for all those who, with visits organized by the Padule association, attended the observatory. Between the end of May and the beginning of July, school groups and summer camps were able to visit the area and observe ducks, herons and waders as well as attend ringing sessions for scientific purposes. The month of June was particularly intense in this sense, especially with the activities dedicated to schools and summer camps. Particularly interesting is "the week of the Padulano" organized by the association "Il Padule". During the week the boys took part in a sort of summer camp at the Casotto del Sordo where, followed by an environmental guide, they had the opportunity to learn about the environment and the typical crafts of the marsh area, finally making a visit to the ornithological observatory to closely observe the various bird species. Among the numerous visits of schoolchildren, those of the Carducci primary school in Fucecchio are worthy of mention as part of a European project aimed at getting to know the Fucecchio marshes. The photos show just one of the days in which the children of the Carducci school visited the ornithological observatory.
The monitoring of the passerines through the capture and the scientific ringing went on regularly every decade during the whole spring summer period. Although from the surveys conducted at singing and on sight the monitored species were numerically high, from the data coming from the ringing it emerges that the number of single individuals was much lower than that of the 2018 season. For the same period examined, the species captured were more or less the same: 21 for 2018 against 19 for 2019. The difference recorded in the two years affected the number of catches which between April and August 2018 were 396 birds against just 134 in 2019. This the enormous difference is essentially due to the decrease in the number of species nesting in the reeds. The reedbill, which is the main species object of capture, has seen a rise from 227 individuals captured in 2018 to only 85 in 2019. The same goes but with considerably lower numbers for Cannareccione and Nightingale. This enormous difference in consistency between the current year and the previous years is probably due to the growth conditions of the reeds at the time of the settlement of these species. As previously mentioned, the abundant water levels, above the average for the period, on the one hand favored the presence of aquatic species but on the other hand slowed the growth of marsh vegetation causing difficulties for nesting passerines.
Despite the relatively low number of catches, there have been species of particular conservation interest: in particular, the capture of a young Salciaiola in full reproductive period and some young individuals of Forapaglie castagnolo are worthy of note; both species have become quite rare and considered target species in assessing the health status of marsh ecosystems. At the end of August, the first migratory movements began to be observed, bringing the long-range species back to their wintering areas in Africa and the appearance of the first continental migrants. In the coming months, in addition to the usual catches aimed at small birds, some sessions aimed at snipe will be conducted as part of a project with the University of Pisa which provides for the affixing to some individuals of GPS detectors to better study their movements during the wintering period. .