Israeli ornithologist to visit Wellington

Israeli ornithologist to visit Wellington

A renowned Israeli bird expert, Dr Yossi Leshem, is visiting Wellington and he will address different audiences during his stay.

Dr Yossi Leshem is an Israeli ornithologist who lectures in the Department of Zoology of Tel Aviv University. He is the former director general of the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel. Currently he is the Director of the International Centre for the study of Bird Migration at Latrun. Dr Leshem will be in Wellington on Sunday 1 and Monday 2 August. This will be a great opportunity to interview a prominent Israeli conservationist.

Dr Leshem has been involved in the study of bird habits in relation to aircraft safety for several years and was awarded a special prize, The Yitzhak Sade Prize for Military Literature in 1994 for a book he wrote entitled Flying with the Birds. The book dealt exclusively with the problems that migrating birds have with aircrafts in such a tiny airspace as Israel’s, where more than 900 million birds, representing at least 300 species, pass through the country annually.

More recently, Leshem has been awarded other prizes for his work to protect civilian aircraft from being struck by birds, including a special award given during the 60th Anniversary celebrations for the Independence of the State of Israel. As the risks of civilian aircraft, especially large passenger aircraft increases, due to the relative slowness of the planes when taking off and landing, the risks at commercial passenger airports is even greater, according to Leshem.

In addition to working to prevent accidents between birds and aircraft, Leshem is also involved in joint conservation projects with Jordan and the Palestinian Authority in which birds of prey, such as hawks and owls are encouraged to live on farms to protect crops from rodent infestation. Special nesting boxes for these birds are placed on the farms to encourage a natural form of pest control without the need for pesticides.

“Not only is this a good solution for the farmers; it encourages good relations between the people involved in these projects” he was quoted as saying.

ENDS

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