Орёл-могильник в песках Мойынкум, Казахстан

Abstract

The Imperial Eagle (Aquila heliaca) is a rare breeding species of Kazakhstan. Previously, it was assumed that one of the large nesting groups of this species, and the most southeastern one in the range, is concentrated in the Moyinqum Sands and adjacent semi-desert areas in the south of Kazakhstan. Based on the results of research in 2022–2023, we confirmed the presence of a large breeding group of the Imperial Eagle in Moyinqum (38 occupied nesting sites were identified) and modeled its distribution in Google Earth Engine using the image classification method – Random Forest (probability + regression). The area of habitats suitable for nesting for the Imperial Eagle in Moyinqum was determined to be 4971.09 km2, and the area of habitats is 55073.86 km2. The number of Imperial Eagle in the territory under consideration is estimated at 79–275, with an average of 150 pairs. Despite the prolonged depression in the number of rodents, the number of eagles remains stable. The size of the broods before departure varied from 1 to 3 nestlings, averaging (n=5) 2±0.71 nestlings per successful nest and (n=9) 1.11±1.17 nestlings per active nest, after fledged – from 1 to 2 fledglings, averaging (n=4) 1.75±0.5 fledglings per successful nest and (n=9) 0.78±0.97 fledglings per active nest. The overall breeding success for all studied nests was 44.44%, and the breeding efficiency was 58.33%. The main anthropogenic threats to the breeding group of the Imperial Eagle in Moyinqum are the conservation of wells, leading to the liquidation of farms and cessation of grazing, and uranium mining.