Vol. 76 (2) 2024

ARTICLES

Age Structure of Hunted Male Capercaillies Tetrao urogallus L., 1758 (Galliformes: Phasianidae) in Bulgaria as Revealed by Examination of Museum Collections

Milena K. Gospodinova*, Atidzhe A. Ahmed & Albena Y. Vlasseva

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*Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, 1 Tsar Osvoboditel Blvd., 1000 Sofia, Bulgaria; E-mail: milenagos@abv.bg

https://doi.org/10.71424/azb76.2.002755

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Abstract
The study aimed to determine the age structure of male capercaillies Tetrao urogallus L., 1758 in Bulgaria based on specimens preserved in collections. We studied 206 birds from the museum collections of the Sitnyakovo Palace (Rila Mnt.) and the National Museum of Natural History, (Bulgarian Academy of Sciences). The age of the birds was determined by the shape of the beak, the shape of the outer feathers of tail, the length of the beak, the length of the beak furrow and the height of the beak at the base. For each of the characteristics used, we divided the birds into three age classes: juvenile (up to 14 months), subadult (between 14 and 60 months) and adult (over 60 months). Of all individuals studied, 92 (44.7%) were juveniles, 64 (31.1%) were subadults and 50 (24.3%) were adults. We found an inconsistency in determining the age of individuals using only one of the characteristics. We proposed to use the angle of curvature of the beak for the age determination. We recommend introducing the requirement to examine more somatometric characteristics in the rare cases when shooting of capercaillies is allowed. This will allow the correct estimation of the age of capercaillies and the accumulation of database information, which will be useful for the management of this difficult to be studied and economically important species.

Key words
age determination, age classes, new characteristics, hunting management

How to Cite
Gospodinova M.K., Ahmed A.A. & Vlasseva A.Y. 2024. Age Structure of Hunted Male Capercaillies Tetrao urogallus L., 1758 (Galliformes: Phasianidae) in Bulgaria as Revealed by Examination of Museum Collections. Acta zoologica bulgarica 76 (2) 263-268.

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