{"id":32012,"date":"2024-06-10T09:36:41","date_gmt":"2024-06-10T06:36:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bspb.org\/?p=32012"},"modified":"2024-06-10T09:36:41","modified_gmt":"2024-06-10T06:36:41","slug":"seventh-pelican-census-held-in-the-balkans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bspb.org\/en\/seventh-pelican-census-held-in-the-balkans\/","title":{"rendered":"Seventh Pelican Census Held in the Balkans"},"content":{"rendered":"

Photo: \u041ene of the platforms in the \u201cKalimok-Brushlen\u201d Protected Area, \u00a9 Damyan Petkov<\/em><\/p>\n

The seventh international pelican census in the Balkans was conducted from June 1-2. The census aims to collect data on the population and distribution of Dalmatian and Great White Pelicans in the study area. The event was organized within the project \u201cPelican Way of LIFE\u201d<\/a> and was coordinated by the Hellenic Ornithological Society (HOS).<\/p>\n

Teams from the Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds (BSPB) also participated in the international initiative. They visited the wetlands of the greatest importance to the two pelican species in the country \u2013 Srebarna Lake, Persin Island, protected area \u201cKalimok-Brashlen\u201d, Burgas Lakes, the dams Ovcharitsa and Rozov Kladenets, Studen Kladenets, Varna Lake, the islands and the sandy slopes along the Danube.<\/p>\n

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Photo: Dalmatian Pelican, \u00a9 Svilen Cheshmedziev\/BSPB<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n

341 Dalmatian Pelicans and 647 Great White Pelicans in total were counted in Bulgaria.. The highest number of Dalmatian Pelicans was observed in the three nesting sites of the species in the country: \u201cKalimok \u2013 Brashlen\u201d protected area near the town of Tutrakan \u2013 118 individuals, in the marshes on Persin Island \u2013 62 individuals, and in Srebarna Lake \u2013 24 individuals. The highest number of Great White Pelicans was recorded in the Burgas Lakes area \u2013 408 individuals, the marshes on Persin Island \u2013 63 individuals, and the Yatata protected area near Varna \u2013 33 individuals.<\/p>\n

During the Census special attention was paid to the three nesting sites of the Dalmatian Pelican in Bulgaria \u2013 Srebarna Lake, Persin Island, and the \u201cKalimok-Brushlen\u201d Protected Area. Currently, all colonies have young pelicans, many of which are already flying successfully. It is encouraging that the level of the Danube River remained relatively high and constant this season, which is crucial for the condition of the wetlands on Persin Island and in the \u201cKalimok-Brushlen\u201d Protected Area.<\/p>\n

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Photo: \u201cKalimok-Brushlen\u201d Protected Area, \u00a9 Svilen Cheshmedziev\/BSPB<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n

The data collected during the international census will contribute to a better understanding and implementation of conservation activities for both species of pelicans in the Balkans. Cross-border cooperation is key to their protection.<\/p>\n

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Photo: Great White and Dalmatian pelicans, \u00a9 Svilen Cheshmedziev\/BSPB<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n

It is important to note that immediately after the census, our team successfully tagged with transmitters two young Dalmatian Pelicans hatched in the colony in the \u201cKalimok-Brushlen\u201d Protected Area. This brings the total number of marked birds from Bulgarian colonies to three, which is a significant achievement and a step forward in the conservation of this majestic species.<\/p>\n

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Photo: BSPB team, \u00a9 Vladimir Mladenov\/BSPB<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n

The transmitters weigh only a few grams and are placed on a special part of the pelicans’ wing where they cause no discomfort. The marked birds quickly adapt to them and can carry out their daily activities without problems. Immediately after the procedures, the Dalmatian Pelicans were released. Currently, data from the transmitters show that the tagged birds are still in the \u201cKalimok-Brushlen\u201d Protected Area. Additionally, this season we successfully placed color rings on 27 young pelicans, again from the colony in the protected area near Tutrakan. The last time such ringing of Dalmatian Pelicans was conducted was about 20 years ago at Srebarna Lake.<\/p>\n

Placing transmitters on Dalmatian Pelicans is a significant advancement in the study of this rare species. Through the data from the rings and satellite telemetry, scientists can track the movements of the birds and locate the places where pelicans feed, roost, rest, breed, and winter. Additionally, valuable data is obtained on the speed, altitude, and manner of flight in real-time. Thanks to the transmitters, we will learn more about the ecology, movements, and threats to the species, which will help us plan and undertake future conservation measures for its protection.<\/p>\n

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Photo: Great White Pelicans, \u00a9 Svilen Cheshmedziev\/BSPB<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n

The actions for protecting the Dalmatian pelican are carried out within the project \u201cPelican Way of LIFE\u201d (LIFE18\/NAT\/NL\/000716), funded by the LIFE Programme of the European Union and with the assistance of the Whitl\u0435y Fund for Nature.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Photo: \u041ene of the platforms in the \u201cKalimok-Brushlen\u201d Protected Area, \u00a9 Damyan Petkov The seventh international pelican census in the Balkans was conducted from June 1-2. The census aims to collect data on the population and distribution of Dalmatian and Great White Pelicans in the study area. The event was organized within the project \u201cPelican […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":31997,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","wds_primary_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[165],"tags":[],"dipi_cpt_category":[],"class_list":["post-32012","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bspb.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32012","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bspb.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bspb.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bspb.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bspb.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32012"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bspb.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32012\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bspb.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/31997"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bspb.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32012"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bspb.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32012"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bspb.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32012"},{"taxonomy":"dipi_cpt_category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bspb.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/dipi_cpt_category?post=32012"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}