A huge thank you to Simeon Marin (Green Balkans; greenbalkans.org/en/) for being a fantastic host and guide throughout this inspiring trip. #VultureConservation #WildlifeReintroduction

We also visited several field sites to observe vultures in the wild, including two successful cinereous vulture nests, and were lucky to witness the opening of the local “vulture restaurant”. Over 60 griffon vultures, 10 cinereous vultures, a white-tailed eagle, and even a few golden jackals.

Just last week, one of the cinereous vultures born at Planckendael this spring was transferred to Bulgaria as part of the ongoing reintroduction programme. We visited the acclimatisation aviary to check in on our feathered friend — doing great and getting ready for release next spring.

Waiting at Sofia Airport for my flight back to Brussels after an amazing trip to Bulgaria 🇧🇬. The visit was part of our new vulture conservation project with KMDA/ZOO Planckendael, and also connected to the documentary by Lode Desmet (and produced by ASSOCIATE DIRECTORS) on our ECoBird research.

🚨 Calling researchers, students, technicians in cognition 🚨

We’re running a 10-min anonymous survey on how animal cognition is defined and studied across disciplines (from ecology, ethology, psychology, neurology, etc). 🧠✨

Scan the QR code & share widely

#AnimalCognition #ResearchSurvey #Science

🚨New Paper Out!🚨

We found that juvenile herring gulls in groups were less neophobic (quicker to eat & spent more time near novel objects) than individuals tested alone🤝

🎉 Read the preregistered report, led by Sophia Knoch & Reinoud Allaert, here:
doi.org/10.1098/rsos...

The quails got company...

Another chapter in their young life (and in our pilot): the quails have arrived at their new home, where they have a bit more space to explore and run around 🐥. Soon they will be joined by some waxbills and silverbills (as part of another pilot study).

Always very happy when you turn on the light in the morning #happyquail

Big news: the quails for our new pilot study have hatched! 🐣At just two days old, they’re already mastering the art of social bonding—because nothing brings young tiny quails together like the cozy warmth of an electric hen.

New preprint from the lab: To Peck or Not To Peck: The influence of early-life social environment on response inhibition and impulsive aggression in Japanese quails. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Another great year at the NVG Annual Meeting!

MSc student Tine Uytterschaut presented her work on released rehabilitated gulls 👏

Frederick presented the 📢recent pre-print📢(osf.io/hzxus) led by Sophia Knoch & Reinoud Allaert on neophobia across social contexts in juvenile gulls 🐤