Дальние залёты обыкновенного (восточного) соловья Luscinia luscinia (Linnaeus, 1758) в Восточную Сибирь

Abstract

The thrush (oriental) nightingale Luscinia luscinia was until recently an accidentally stray species in the Baikal Region. It was first recorded here in 1870 in the garden of the salt factory of Usolye town near Irkutsk. Despite quite intensive ornithological surveys of the territory, it has not been recorded here until now. And only in the second decade of the 21st century it was discovered in the basin of Lake Baikal. There is no doubt that this species has been missed by ornithologists and bird lovers due to the extreme rarity of flights and the low intensity of research in recent years. Based on long-term special studies of the bird population (2009-2023), with full coverage of all types of their habitats, we have recorded four meetings of the thrush nightingale on Southern Baikal near the village of Listvyanka (Irkutsk Region, Irkutsk District, middle reaches of Kamenushka Brook): June 13, 2017, June 15, 2019 and July 6, 2023 (two recordings). Undoubtedly, due to the noticeable warming of the climate in the second half of the 20th century, there has been a clear trend of expanding the ranges of many bird species to the southeast and northeast (the western flow of migrants). The expansion of the range of the common (eastern) nightingale was very slow. Nevertheless, over a century, this species, moving east from the junction of the Western and Eastern Sayan ridges, was able to reach the lake basin. Baikal, probably through the easiest and most frequently used flyway along the valley of the Angara River. The absence of this species in the western regions of the Cisbaikalia may be due to several reasons: low intensity of research, inaccessible and sparsely populated terrain near the eastern border of the range and the use of local areas with the most suitable habitats for the species for nesting. With a targeted survey of the most characteristic and typical nesting stations of the species, it can be detected fairly quickly in the western regions of the Cisbaikalia. Interestingly, on June 13, 2023, this species was discovered and photographed by amateur ornithologist Viktor Khazin in Transbaikalia (near the Borzya railway station). The pictures were presented on the Birds of Siberia website, were discussed quite intensively by ornithologists and, according to the general opinion, an the thrush nightingale was photographed with a high probability by the author. At the same time, the southern nightingale Luscinia megarhynchos, whose range covers the western outskirts of Mongolia and China, is more likely to meet here. Nevertheless, it is not excluded that the thrush nightingale from the basin of Lake Baikal will get here, as it was observed in a number of western bird species that have gone, often in isolated individuals, far to the east. Currently, the status of this species in Eastern Siberia can be characterized as a very rare stray species with unproven nesting even as episodic cases.