Northern Bald Ibis

En el marco del "Programa de Emergencias, Control Epidemiológico y Seguimiento de Fauna Silvestre de Andalucía", el presente informe describe y analiza la población reproductora en el conjunto de la región andaluza de las aves terrestres objeto de seguimiento prioritario en 2015 por este Programa. En total se tratan 3 especies: ibis eremita Geronticus eremita, avutarda común Otis tarda y alondra ricotí Chersophilus duponti. Los resultados así obtenidos son empleados para inferir las principales conclusiones en cuanto a las tendencias poblacionales que muestran las especies objeto en la comunidad autónoma andaluza, que afecciones y/o amenazas les atañen y proponer las medidas de gestión necesarias para asegurar la persistencia de sus poblaciones a largo plazo. El Decreto 23/2012, de 14 de febrero, por el que se regula la conservación y el uso sostenible de la flora y la fauna silvestres y sus hábitats de Andalucía, cataloga al ibis eremita en la categoría de Extinta (E); la avutarda En Peligro (EN) y Vulnerable (VU) a la alondra de ricotí.

The paper concentrates on ancient Egyptian attestations of the presence of the northern bald ibis in Egypt, evidence for bservations of the bird’s behaviour and biotope, and especially on its religious significance as witnessed in the concept of akh (the spirit or blessed dead). It could also be viewed as a case-study that shows how both the accuracy and insufficiency of ancient (textual and pictorial) attestations could present us with criteria for recognizing the presence and disappearance of an animal species in a distant historical period.

The notion of akh, often translated as (effective) spirit, pointed toward many different meanings, such as the identity of the transfigured dead as well as that of living persons who acted efficaciously for (or on behalf of) their masters. The akh belonged to cardinal terms of ancient Egyptian religion and hence is often found in Egyptian religious texts, as well as in other textual and iconographic sources. Its basic meaning was related to effectiveness and reciprocal relationship that crossed the borderlines between different spheres.

Stadtgemeinde Waidhofen an der Thaya 4 Siehe den Abschnitt "Die Initiale" ab S. 376. 5 Stowasser transkribiert "Sigel", weil er den Bogen, der am Zeilenende vom unteren Schaft ende des "l" vom Schreiber nach oben geführt wird, als Kürzung versteht. Die Deutung des Federstrichs muss freilich unsicher bleiben, weil der Grundstockschreiber beim Wort "insigel" das ausgefallene "e" (wie durchgängig) durch einen horizontal überschriebenen Haarstrich ersetzt (vgl. fol. 2v [ebenfalls am Zeilenende] in Zeile 9 von unten). Kornelia Holzner-Tobisch schlägt die Auflösung "Siegler" oder "Sigerl" als weitere Möglichkeit vor. Andreas Zajic interpretiert den Namen-unabhängig wie man ihn im Detail liest-als Koseform des Vornamens Sigmund.

Die Quellensammlung zum Waldrapp (Geronticus eremita - Northern Bald Ibis) versammelt Knochenfunde (ab dem Miozän), Bildquellen aus dem Mittleren Osten, dem Alten Ägypten, der Antike, dem Mittelalter und bis ins 17. Jahrhundert und Textquellen, die bis in die Antike zurückreichen und einen eindeutigen Höhepunkt im 16. Jahrhundert (Conrad Gesner [Gessner]) haben.

The akh and the ba count among the most important Egyptian religious concepts of human and divine beings. Both occur frequently in Egyptian texts, from its beginnings until the very
dusk of the hieroglyphic script, and, coincidently, both were represented by signs in shape of birds. This study focuses on the interdependency between the term or notion and the sign and its natural model. The outcomes reveal that natural changes can have important impact upon script, ideas and religious beliefs.

Three different kinds of ibis species are attested from ancient Egypt: the sacred ibis, the glossy ibis, and the northern bald ibis. Pictorial representations of the latter bird-easily recognizable by the shape of its body, the shorter legs, long curved beak, and the typical crest covering the back of the head-were used in writings of the noun akh and related words and notions (e.g., the blessed dead). We can deduce from modern observations that in ancient times this member of the ibis species used to dwell on rocky cliffs on the eastern bank of the Nile, that is, at the very place designated as the ideal rebirth and resurrection region (the akhet). Thus, the northern bald ibises might have been viewed as visitors and messengers from the other world-earthly manifestations of the blessed dead (the akhu). The material and pictorial evidence dealing with the northern bald ibis in ancient Egypt is accurate, precise, and elaborate in the early periods of Egyptian history (until the final phase of the third millennium BCE). Later, the representations of this bird became schematized and do not correspond to nature. Thus, they do not present us with any direct and convincing evidence for the presence of the northern bald ibis in Egypt, and, moreover, they most probably witness both the bird's decline and its disappearance from the country.