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Gyrfalcons to Germany: Herdemerten's expedition to west Greenland, 1938

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 December 2010

William Barr
William Barr*
Affiliation:
Arctic Institute of North America, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive NW, Calgary AB T2N 1N4, Canada ([email protected])
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Abstract

In the summer of 1938 the Hermann-Göring-Stiftung [Hermann Göring Foundation], located at the Reichsjägerhof Riddagshausen near Braunschweig, dispatched a two man expedition to west Greenland, primarily in order to capture gyrfalcons. Although nowhere stated in the expedition account, the aim appears to have been to acclimatise the birds to a German environment for the purpose of falconry. Five birds were captured and transported to Germany, four juveniles from a nest near Godhavn and an adult bird from near Uummannaq. After a brief sojourn at Riddagshausen the birds were transferred to Goldhöhe (Zlaté návr_í) in the Riesengebirge (Krkono_e) as being a more appropriate environment. The results of the experiment and the fate of the birds are not stated in the expedition account. Secondary aims of the expedition were geological, meteorological and botanical investigations and bird banding.

Type
Research Article
Information
Polar Record , Volume 48 , Issue 2 , April 2012 , pp. 113 - 122
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2010

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