2012
Award Winner: Dr. Heiko Schmaljohann

The 2012 Hans Löhrl Prize was awarded to Dr. Heiko Schmaljohann of the Institute for Ornithology “Vogelwarte Helgoland” in Wilhelmshaven for his wide-ranging and outstanding studies on the topic of “Optimal Bird Migration.”
His research has made significant contributions to our understanding of the crossing of the Sahara, the selection and use of stopover sites, and has provided new insights into the entire migration process of individual birds. The results he obtained from a broad spectrum of migratory species complement those derived from a model species, namely the stonechat. Using this species, he specifically investigated how a resting migratory bird decides whether to stay or continue its journey. He was able to demonstrate that both the bird’s physical condition and various environmental factors influence such decisions in complex ways. It was only through the combination of a wide variety of innovative techniques—ranging from remote weighing of birds to the use of radar and light loggers to the analysis of stable isotopes—that he gained insights previously impossible due to technical limitations.