Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus Crispus Research Articles

Understanding local knowledge and attitudes toward potential reintroduction of a former British wetland bird

AbstractStakeholder acceptance and support is essential for long‐term success in species reintroductions, and assessing social feasibility of reintroductions within human‐occupied landscapes is an integral component of effective decision‐making.The Dalmatian pelicanPelecanus crispusis an extirpated British bird, and possible pelican reintroduction to British wetlands is under discussion. Any reintroduction planning must first assess local community awareness, attitudes, and acceptance of potential pelican arrival and associated habitat management, as part of wider socio‐ecological feasibility assessment. Pelicans are distinctive species with potential to increase support for wetland conservation, but might provoke conflict through real or perceived competition with landscape users such as fishers; such conflict is already seen within Britain between fishers and cormorants.We conducted an online survey of 590 respondents in the Somerset Levels and East Anglian Fens, Britain's largest wetland landscapes, to understand local views on pelican reintroduction, other reintroductions and wetland restoration, and to investigate correlates of varying attitudes toward coexistence with pelicans and five other waterbirds (grey heron, Eurasian bittern, little egret, common crane, great cormorant).Respondents had generally positive views about previous reintroductions of other species, and had overall positive attitudes toward all six waterbirds. Two‐thirds of respondents supported or strongly supported pelican reintroduction, but both benefits and concerns were identified in relation to its possible reintroduction. Anglers and hunters were more likely to hold negative attitudes toward pelicans, other waterbirds and wetland restoration. However, although anglers raised more concerns, they were not more likely to be unsupportive toward reintroduction. More socio‐demographic predictors were associated with negative attitudes toward restoration required to establish pelican habitat, suggesting that positive feelings toward biodiversity are outweighed by concerns around potential exclusion from local landscapes.Our findings suggest pelican reintroduction might be supported by local stakeholders. Attitudes toward cormorants do not represent a blueprint for attitudes toward pelicans, and anglers may support reintroduction if concerns around impacts to fish stocks are addressed. Community engagement for species‐specific and landscape‐scale actions require separate approaches, with landscape management planning needing to target a wider range of stakeholder groups with separate concerns to those about coexistence with pelicans.Read the freePlain Language Summaryfor this article on the Journal blog.

Challenges for incorporating long‐term baselines into biodiversity restoration: A case study of the Dalmatian Pelican (Pelecanus crispus) in Britain

Species reintroductions are a core component of conservation but require critical assessment of past baselines. The Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus formerly occurred in Britain during the Holocene and there is interest in its possible reintroduction, but its regional extinction dynamics remain poorly understood. Pelican bones are known from subfossil and zooarchaeological contexts at 11 British Holocene sites in three regions (East Anglian Fens, Somerset Levels and Moors, Humber Valley). Dalmatian Pelican is positively identified from four of these sites, with other specimens only identified to genus level. Pelican populations were probably only present periodically in Britain during intervals of suitable climate and available habitat: there is little evidence for pelicans before the Bronze Age, and most sites are known or inferred to be Iron Age. There is a suggested Medieval specimen but no secure evidence of pelican presence after the Roman period. However, no specimens are directly dated, with age estimation reliant upon indirect dates or inference. Climatic niche modelling indicates that southern Britain was the northwestern limit of pelican climate tolerance under postglacial conditions, and pelicans may have been unable to persist regionally until the mid‐ or late Holocene. Considerable pelican breeding and foraging habitat might have existed until the Medieval period, but availability of suitable habitat fluctuated throughout the Holocene. Probabilistic analysis suggests possible mean extinction date estimates between ad 589 and ad 1587, highlighting uncertainty associated with indirect data, and hindering our ability to correlate pelican disappearance with putative extinction drivers (overexploitation, human modification of wetlands, or non‐anthropogenic environmental changes). Improving our understanding of conditions associated with past pelican occurrence is essential for potential reintroduction decision‐making, and direct dating of bones from all sites is needed to establish a secure chronological framework for correlating pelican presence and disappearance with regional landscape change. This review provides a robust framework for how to integrate past environmental baselines into conservation decision‐making and reintroduction feasibility assessments.

Резкое падение численности кудрявого пеликана Pelecanus crispus (Aves: Pelecaniformes) на Урале и в Западной Сибири в 2021 г.

The Dalmatian pelican Pelecanus crispus (Bruch, 1832) is a globally rare species. Its extremely local ("point") placement during the nesting period on a few hard-to-reach water bodies distanced far from one another makes it a highly vulnerable species. In the end of the 20th century, the number of the species in Chelyabinsk, Kurgan and Tyumen oblasts steadily grew. This was largely due to the redistribution of individuals from drying reservoirs of the more southern parts of the breeding range to the northern ones against the background of global climate warming. Thus, pelicans stopped nesting in the Svetlinsky Reserve (Orenburg oblast) due to the drought. In the spring and summer of 2021, the first mass deaths of these birds occurred in the history of study in the Urals and Western Siberia. During the observations of seven colonies in Chelyabinsk, Kurgan and Tyumen oblasts using the DJI Mavic-2 Zoom drone, we found that many individuals did not return to the breeding grounds in the spring after wintering, and another part died at the height of the breeding season. As a result, the number of pelicans decreased by 70-80% in some colonies; in others, the proportion of dead birds was less, and some separate colonies were almost not affected at all. At the same time, in the western part of the study area (Chelyabinsk oblast), a significant part of the individuals died outside the breeding grounds, whereas in the eastern part, the birds died mainly in the breeding grounds and at a later time. In Kurgan oblast, the death of birds was noted in May, in Tyumen oblast it was in June. The total number of pelicans in the study area decreased from 1.2-1.4 thousand pairs to about 600 pairs (see the table). Six colonies were preserved; most of them now number 30-50 breeding pairs at best. However, in the study area, the largest colony (and the easternmost in the Okunevo Reserve (Tyumen oblast)) survived almost completely with about 400 pairs of pelicans continuing to breed. No more than 30 individuals died there, and this happened later than in other colonies, in July 2021. The main version of the cause of birds’ mass death is the epizootic of avian influenza which was tested in all samples (n = 5) taken from a colony in Tyumen oblast. Pelicans live in dense flocks all year round, and this could really contribute to the rapid spread of the infection. The facts of the birds’ death in various nesting sites located on a large territory, at a great distance from one another, make it seem that they contracted the virus in wintering areas. However, a number of questions remain unanswered. In particular, it is unclear how the infected birds were able to travel thousands of kilometers to their breeding grounds, why individuals of only one particular species died, why only adults died, and why they died at different times. Maybe, the avian influenza virus tested in the birds’ bodies was low-pathogenic and was not the cause of their death, but it was due to some other factor, such as food poisoning. It might be that the immunity of the birds was weakened by the abnormal heat that came to the study area since mid-May 2021. If the birds died from a highly pathogenic virus, it is unclear why this did not happen immediately after infection (in the wintering areas), but in a long time, at least from May to July. Moreover, the infection with the virus did not prevent the birds from arriving at breeding sites, building nests, laying eggs and starting to incubate. However, influenza viruses are very diverse and continue to evolve rapidly changing their properties and increasing resistance to the environment. Our understanding of the ecological factors favoring emergence and sustainability of these viruses is still limited. More efforts should certainly be made to save such a globally rare species as the Dalmatian pelican. At the moment, a large breeding colony on the territory of Western Siberia (on Tundrovo Lake in the Okunevo Reserve (Tyumen oblast)) remains the main breeding ground of the species in this area. Therefore, the importance of preserving this breeding colony comes to the fore. The article contains 1 Table, 42 References. The Author declares no conflict of interest.

Artificial nesting platforms support population recovery of the Dalmatian pelican Pelecanus crispus along the Danube River in Bulgaria

The Dalmatian pelican Pelecanus crispus is a Near Threatened species of waterbird with populations in the wetlands of the Lower Danube River. Breeding populations declined due to habitat loss and wetland drainage and conservation efforts have focused on bringing breeding Dalmatian pelicans back to their former wetland sites in Bulgaria. Since 2008, conservation efforts have focused on building artificial nesting platforms at marshes along the Lower Danube River. These efforts resulted in considerable growth of the population in the country. Between 2011 and 2021, four wooden platforms were installed at the Belene Island wetland complex (Pechina and Martvo Marshes) and the Kalimok wetland complex. All four platforms were used successfully by pelicans, resulting in the formation of two new breeding colonies and a total of 91 pairs in 2021. The majority, 88 pairs, were recorded at the Belene Island marshes, with the remainder at the Kalimok colony. The average annual breeding success was 1.17 young per pair at Peschina Marsh (occupied from 2016-2021), 0.90 at Martvo Marsh (2020-2021), and 1.33 at Kalimok (2021). The average across all three colonies was 1.14 young per pair. By 2021, the breeding population of Dalmatian pelicans in Bulgaria had grown to 131-150 breeding pairs at three locations.

Long-Term Changes in the Wintering Population of the Dalmatian Pelican along the Black Sea-Mediterranean Flyway

Understanding spatiotemporal dynamics in wildlife populations is of paramount importance for their effective conservation, however longitudinal studies are relatively scarce for most animal groups. Waterbirds are an exception however, since midwinter surveys have been implemented in most areas of the world for over four decades. The Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus is a globally threatened emblematic wetland species of the Palearctic, with a wide distribution in Europe and Asia. Its global population is divided into three distinct groups that coincide with the Black Sea-Mediterranean Flyway, the Central Asian Flyway and the East Asian Flyway. In this study we used International Waterfowl Census data to assess long-term changes in the wintering population of the Dalmatian Pelican pertaining to the Black Sea-Mediterranean Flyway. We report national and regional population trends in SE Europe and Turkey and explore spatiotemporal patterns in the wintering numbers and distribution of the species in relation to climate variability during the last two decades. Our key findings suggest that during the past 30 years the abundance of wintering Pelicans increased across the entire study area. Within the eastern subpopulation this increase was most accentuated in the northern edge of the species' wintering distribution, which was associated with a local warming trend, and was coupled with a north-eastern shift in the distribution pattern, yet not driven by climate conditions. Other contributing factors, such as winter site fidelity, local food availability, finer scale climatic and habitat conditions, but also carry-over effects should be considered in future studies. Given the advancement of first laying dates in Dalmatian Pelicans in almost all breeding sites and the strict timing of IWC counts, we also propose the implementation of species-specific winter surveys, independently from IWC, to obtain a more thorough understanding of the dynamics of the Dalmatian Pelican's wintering population.

Annotated Checklist of the Marine and Coastal Birds of Lebanon

The study of marine and coastal birds in the Lebanon recorded 75speciesalong the shore line of Lebanon and for a distance of 7 kms offshore.Of those species,35 are seabirdspecies, 38 marine or seawater/freshwater coastal birds, and 2waterbird specieswintering on the archipelagoes of Mina/Tripoli in North Lebanon (Grey Heron and Little Egret)with apparently much affinity to seawater in the winter season. This study highlighted 3 globally threatened species (Leach’s Storm Petrel Hydrobates leucorhoa [Vulnerable], Mediterranean Yelkouan Shearwater Puffinus yelkouan [Vulnerable], and Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus [Vulnerable]), underlined7 globally Near Threatened avian species, pointed out to 3 species that may be submitted for reconsideration bythe “Lebanon Bird Record Committee” (LBRC) at LCNRS;and updated the data of 9species of high significance from the past studies, of which, 2 species are upgraded from vagrants to winter visitors/passage migrants, one to passage migrant and one to wintervisitor..Regarding the final phenological statusesof species, one is resident breeding, one is summer breeding, 3 are formerly bred, one extirpated (extinct) from Lebanon 31are passage migrant/winter visitors, 25passage migrantsonly, 2winter visitors and 14vagrant species.

The kleptoparasitic and commensal association of Dalmatian Pelicans Pelecanus crispus with Great Cormorants Phalacrocorax carbo

The association between Dalmatian Pelicans Pelecanus crispus and Great Cormorants Phalacrocorax carbowas studied at three Greek sites, Megali Prespa, Kerkini and Karla. At Prespa, the two species seemed to use each other mutually: pelicans benefited from fish that tried to escape from the cormorants by swimming towards the surface while cormorants used the pelicans as a cue to the presence of fish shoals. When a pelican flew towards a cormorant, other cormorants immediately flew there and dived instantly. The association usually was very brief lasting only a mean of circa 114 s. Pelicans mostly foraged singly or in small groups (mean 3.2 individuals) and often there were also few cormorants (median 6). Kleptoparasitism was recorded at all three sites, but at Kerkini and Karla, pelicans associated with the huge fishing flocks of cormorants and predominantly kleptoparasitized them. Around 20% of attacks were successful. Thirty-one attacks were very violent with the pelican holding the cormorant until it dropped its fish.

What caused the strong increase of the winter population of the Dalmatian Pelican, Pelecanus crispus, in Iran in the last two decades?

The Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus is listed globally as “Near Threatened”. We used the results of the International Waterbird Census from 1998 to 2017 to find trends in wintering numbers. Of the 102 sites examined, 29 were classified as regular, 18 as irregular and 55 as occasional wintering habitats for the species. Both the population size and the geographical distribution increased in the second half of the study period. The Anzali Wetland Complex, Gomishan Marsh, Gorgan Bay and Miankaleh Wildlife Refuge, inlets and mangroves east of Jask, the east coast of Chabahar and inlets and mangroves west of Konarak were identified as the most important wintering areas of the Dalmatian Pelican in Iran. Wintering numbers increased from 300 to 1,100 in the 1970s and from c. 800 in the 1980s to c. 1,800 by 2006 and up to c. 10,000 in 2017. Thus, more than 37% of the global population of the species overwinters in Iran. A combination of a series of warm winters and delayed timing of cold spells appears to be responsible for the increase of the wintering population.

Establishment and Growth of a New Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus Colony in Central Greece

Although many waterbirds breed in colonies, documented colonisation events are rare. I studied the establishment and growth of a new breeding colony of the globally Near Threatened Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus at the newly created Karla Reservoir, Central Greece, between 2012 and 2017. The reservoir began filling with water in 2009. The first pelicans were observed in 2009 and numbers increased to 950 in June 2015. Since then the occurrence pattern changed and numbers fluctuated seasonally, being high during breeding and almost zero during summer and autumn. The first pair bred in 2011 and breeding pairs reached 445 in 2017, becoming the second largest colony of Dalmatian Pelican in Europe and manifesting an annual growth rate of 176.4%. The high rate of increase and re-sightings of ringed and tagged Dalmatian Pelicans suggest that colonisers must have been immigrants from the nearest two colonies in Kerkini Reservoir and/or Lake Prespa (northern Greece). Breeding success ranged from 0.54 to 0.88 young/nest, which is low for the species. Both the change in occurrence pattern and the low breeding success must be attributed to reasons other than nesting conditions. From a conservation point of view this new breeding colony may act as an ecological trap for Dalmatian Pelicans, as low water quality will probably continue favouring conditions leading to mass pelican mortality.

The status of waterbird populations of Chhaya Rann Wetland Complex in Porbandar, Gujarat, India

The present investigation was undertaken to study the diversity of wetland birds in Chhaya Rann (Gujarati: Deserted land) wetland complex, situated in the urban setting of Porbandar City, in the western state of Gujarat, India. Almost 70 species belonging to 21 families of wetland birds have been reported from here with an estimated count of 35,747 and 20,981 in the year 2016 and 2015 respectively. Anatidae and Scolopacidae represent the higher number of species (11 each) followed by Ardeidae (eight species) and Laridae (seven species). The wetland complex supports one IUCN Red Listed Vulnerable species (Common Pochard Aythya ferina), six Near Threatened species (Lesser Flamingo Phoeniconaias minor, Oriental Darter Anhinga melanogaster, Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus, Black-headed Ibis Threskiornis melanocephalus, Black-tailed Godwit Limosa limosa and River Tern Sterna aurantia), and 63 Least Concern species. The wetland meets the Criteria 5 and 6 for listing as a wetland of international importance under the Ramsar Convention.

Seasonal differences in energy expenditure, flight characteristics and spatial utilization of Dalmatian Pelicans Pelecanus crispus in Greece

Animals typically adjust their behaviour to their changing environment throughout the annual cycle, modulating key processes such as the timing of breeding and the onset of migration. Such behavioural changes are commonly manifested in the movements and the energetic balance of individuals in relation to their species‐specific physiological characteristics, habitat attributes and the environmental properties of their distribution ranges. We used GPS and acceleration data collected using transmitters on free‐ranging birds to quantify annual movement patterns and estimate energy expenditure of the Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus, a large, soaring avian species which performs short‐distance migration and spends its entire annual cycle in mid‐latitudes. To assess the representativeness of our results, the transmitter effect was also tested. We found that daily trends in the overall dynamic body acceleration (ODBA; a proxy for energy expenditure) differed among seasons, with the highest values occurring during spring and the lowest during winter. Long inter‐lake flights were very rare in winter, and the number of flights and ODBA during spring was higher than during summer, suggesting greater motivation to move in spring. Although transmitters may have affected the birds, as none of the tagged birds bred, we found seasonal differences in behaviour and activity level. The observed patterns in differences in activity levels, long‐distance flights and flight characteristics between seasons suggest an annual rhythm of energy expenditure. These findings allow a better understanding of bird phenology, specifically regarding adaptations to wintering in a cold climate by reducing movement‐driven energy expenditure. Finally, the identification of periods with high and low energy expenditure may guide future conservation efforts by adjusting conservation plans in accordance with changing needs during the annual cycle.

Recent Data on the Danube Delta (Romania) Avifauna from the 2014 and 2015 Summer Seasons

Abstract A number of faunistically interesting observations related to the avifauna of the Danube Delta (Romania) are presented. In the spring of 2015, a mass mortality event with a minimum of 118 dead birds occurred in a major Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus colony in the Black Sea lagoons caused by the avian flu virus, strain H5N1. A possible hybrid between Little Egret Egretta garzetta and Western Reef Heron Egretta gularis was observed. The first nesting of Ruddy Shelduck Tadorna ferruginea in the Danube Delta was documented. Goldeneye Bucephala clangula and Smew Mergus albellus are re-colonising the areas they abandoned in the early 20th century. New data regarding the relocation of Pallas’s Gull Larus ichthyaetus colony in the Danube Delta as a result of hydromorphological changes in the bay, nesting and defence strategies against Caspian Gulls Larus cachinnans are described. Probable nesting of Citrine Wagtail Motacilla citreola in the Danube Delta was documented in 2014 for the first time.

First archaeogenetic results verify the mid‐Holocene occurrence of Dalmatian pelican Pelecanus crispus far out of present range

The paper presents an evaluation of subfossil bird bones from archaeological and geological sites in Europe that shows that birds of the genus Pelecanus occurred far out of their present range between 7.4 and 5.0 ka BP in the Danish archipelago. Additionally, from other northwestern European regions mid‐Holocene records of pelicans are known. However, due to morphological similarities there are difficulties in species identification. In this paper ancient DNA barcoding techniques were used to clarify the species assignment of one of these records for the first time. Our results show that the bone derives from Dalmatian pelican Pelecanus crispus, a species that today breeds in 15 colonies in the eastern Mediterranean. This species identification is especially remarkable since the Dalmatian pelican is known to be less migratory. We demonstrate that the appearance and disappearance of pelicans in northwestern Europe coincide with climate parameters, since all records fall within warm periods. This applies for the larger group of Danish records during the Holocene thermal maximum in northern Europe as well as for two more groups of records from central Europe and Britain dating to 1.9 and 0.8 ka ago. Recent ecological research on the Dalmatian pelican shows that the species seems to profit from the modern climate changes and is starting to expand its range. Our paper documents that under special circumstances short‐distance migrant birds are also able to expand their ranges to areas far outside of the former distribution areas. Finally, the Dalmatian pelican is presented as an indicator species reflecting special climate conditions.The present study demonstrates not only the possibility to recover avian DNA from at least 7 ka old bones, but the relevance of such genetic analysis in combination with archaeological data, particularly if bones could not be assigned to species level by morphological features. In such cases, aDNA is shown as a valuable tool for the reconstruction of the avifauna of the past.

Redke vrste ptic v sloveniji v letu 2013 – Poročilo Nacionalne komisije za redkosti / Rare birds in Slovenia in 2013 – Slovenian Rarities Committee's Report

Summary This report by the Slovenian Rarities Committee presents records of rare bird species in Slovenia in 2013, with some addenda for previous years. The numbers in brackets refer to the number of records (first number) and individuals (second number), recorded between 1 Jan 1950 and 31 Dec 2012. Since 1 Jan 2013, submission to the Committee is required for 37 additional species, 17 of which are regional rarities. Records of these species are not numbered, since records from previous years were not collected by the Committee. Four new species were recorded in category A: White-headed Duck Oxyura leucocephala, Baillon’s Crake Porzana pusilla, Audouin’s Gull Larus audouinii and Siberian Rubythroat Calliope calliope. Three species, Helmeted Guineafowl Numida meleagris, Chukar Alectoris chukar and Common Bulbul Pycnonotus barbatus, were added to category E. Other notable observations were the second and third records of Bewick’s Swan Cygnus columbianus and fourth record of Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus. The list of birds recorded in Slovenia (as of 31 Dec 2013) contains 384 species (369 in category A, 7 in category B, 8 exclusively in category C; 4 species are both in categories A and C). Category D contains 6 species, while category E contains 33. These two categories are not part of the list

Contracaecum gibsoni n. sp. and C. overstreeti n. sp. (Nematoda: Anisakidae) from the Dalmatian pelican Pelecanus crispus (L.) in Greek waters: genetic and morphological evidence

Two new species of Contracaecum Railliet & Henry, 1912, previously referred to as C. multipapillatum sp. A and C. multipapillatum sp. B by Nascetti et al. (1990) from the Dalmatian pelican Pelecanus crispus (L.) in the Ambracian Gulf off Greece, are described as C. gibsoni n. sp. and C. overstreeti n. sp., respectively. Morphological analysis and the differential diagnosis of genetically recognised male specimens of C. gibsoni and C. overstreeti with respect to C. multipapillatum (von Drasche, 1882) (sensu lato) from Egretta alba (L.) in northern Colombia and other morphologically related Contracaecum spp. enabled the detection of differences between the two species in a number of characters, including spicule length and the shape of its tip, and the arrangement of the proximal and distal papillae on the male tail. Accordingly, formal descriptions are presented for C. gibsoni n. sp. and C. overstreeti n. sp. from P. crispus. The genetic characterisation of the two taxa is based on 20 allozyme loci and sequence analyses (519 bp) of the mtDNA cox2 gene. Reproductive isolation was demonstrated between these two taxa, which sympatrically infect the same definitive host, and fixed allele differences between the two species were found at some (Aat-2, PepC-1, PepC-2 and Pgm-1) of the 20 allozyme loci analysed. Their genetic divergence, estimated at the allozyme level, was D ( Nei ) = 0.31. The genetic relationships of C. gibsoni and C. overstreeti with respect to C. multipapillatum (s. l.) collected from E. alba in Colombia, as well as with other congeners from fish-eating birds which had previously been genetically characterised using the same genetic markers, i.e. C. rudolphii A and C. rudolphii B of Bullini et al. (1986), C. septentrionale Kreis, 1955, C. microcephalum (Rudolphi, 1809), C. bioccai Mattiucci et al., 2008, C. pelagicum Johnston & Mawson, 1942 and C. micropapillatum (Stossich, 1890), were inferred from mtDNA cox2 sequence analysis. The MP, NJ and BI trees obtained were congruent in depicting C. gibsoni and C. overstreeti as closely related species but quite distinct from each other and forming a subclade with specimens of C. multipapilllatum (s. l.) from E. alba (L.) in Colombia. This subclade was also found to be distinct from the remainder of the taxa considered.

Important Bird Areas in Macedonia: Sites of Global and European Importance

Important Bird Areas in Macedonia: Sites of Global and European Importance

Status of the East Asian population of the Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus: the need for urgent conservation action

AbstractThe Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus is a globally threatened species with three distinct populations, the smallest of which is the almost extinct eastern race with an estimated population size of 50 birds breeding in Mongolia and migrating to south-east China during the winter. We analysed recent survey information and published records to construct a picture of the annual life cycle of the Dalmatian Pelican and how it has changed over the years. We were able to obtain a total of 196 records from 82 sites in China and Mongolia dating back to 1862. Seasonal information was available for 168 records. The pelicans breed in western Mongolia and migrate in a south-easterly direction to the Bo Sea and then southwards along the coasts of Shandong and Jiangsu to the wintering area in south-east China. Return migration to the breeding grounds follows the same general path. There is some evidence that part of the population uses an inland migration route linking the wetlands along the Yellow and Huai Rivers and the middle reaches of the Yangtze River; this route was probably more important historically. The pelicans are encountering serious problems at all stages of their annual life cycle: destruction of nesting habitat and hunting in the breeding area, loss of important wetland habitats along the inland migration routes, and land claim, human disturbance and overexploitation of fisheries resources on the coast. It is highly desirable that a simultaneous count be conducted of the key wintering sites so that an accurate population estimate can be obtained. Use of satellite telemetry would provide very useful information on migration strategies and home ranges in the wintering grounds, and assist greatly in identifying key habitats for conservation action at different stages of the annual life cycle.

Waterbird population estimates for a key staging site in Kazakhstan: a contribution to wetland conservation on the Central Asian flyway

AbstractRealistic population size estimates for waterbirds are crucial for the application of wetland conservation strategies, since the identification of internationally important wetlands is based on local numbers relative to the population size of the respective species. Central Asia is a poorly surveyed region that is situated at the intersection of migration routes that lead waterbirds from Western Siberia to the south-west (South-West Asia, East Africa) and to the south-east (South Asia, India). We calculated waterbird population estimates for the Tengiz–Korgalzhyn region, a large wetland complex in the steppe zone of Central Kazakhstan, based on waterbird surveys conducted between 1999 and 2004. For 20 of 43 species analysed the region supported more than 5% of the relevant flyway populations. Five species occurred with more than 40% of the flyway totals, including the Endangered White-headed Duck Oxyura leucocephala and the Vulnerable Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus. Peak numbers were recorded in summer and autumn and for most species numbers were more than an order of magnitude lower on spring migration compared with autumn migration. We identified 72 individual sites that held more than 20,000 waterbirds or more than 1% of a particular flyway population at least once. These sites are likely to constitute priorities for conservation. The general conservation status of the region is favourable, since many of the important sites are located within a strict nature reserve. However, outside the reserve hunting, fishing and powerline casualties represent conservation issues that should be monitored more carefully in the future.

Status of pelicans and cormorants on the northern Black Sea

The status of breeding pelicans and cormorants is assessed in the area from the Danube delta (Romania) to the northern part of the Crimean peninsula. Four breeding species occur in inland and coastal wetlands: Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus, Great White Pelican Pelecanus onocrotalus, Great Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo and Pygmy Cormorant Phalacrocorax pygmeus. Data on clutch size and breeding success are given. Historically, all four species were restricted to the Danube delta. Currently, with the exception of Dalmatian Pelican, they all breed successfully on the eastern Black Sea coast in the Ukraine. There are many conservation problems that will jeopardize the breeding of these species in the future if nothing is done.

Waterbirds in coastal wetlands along the Persian Gulf coast of Iran, January–February 2000

In January and February 2000, about 20 wetland sites were visited to count waterbirds and pay special attention to the presence of Slender-billed Curlews Numenius tenuirostris, a Globally Threatened species. At least 1,200 Eurasian Curlews N. arquata and 240 Whimbrels N. phaeopus were checked individually, but no Slender-billed Curlews were observed. More than 53,000 waterbirds of 82 species were counted during the survey, including Globally Threatened Species like Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus, Marbled Teal Marmaronetta angustirostris, Ferrugineous Duck Aythya nyroca, White-tailed Eagle Halaeetus albicilla, Greater Spotted Eagle Aquila clanga, and Imperial Eagle Aquila heliaca. Only a small part of the wetlands along the Iranian Gulf coast were counted and a total of over 240,000 waders were estimated to winter in the surveyed wetlands. Our survey suggests that the total Iranian Gulf coast is very important for waterbirds and in particular for waders and Dalmatian Pelican. Apparently suitable habitat for Slender-billed Curlews, including irrigated wheat fields, extensive salt marshes and marshland close to intertidal mudflats, was found in the Hilleh Protected Area (42,600 ha) and Monde Protected Area (46,700 ha), as well as much of the surrounding area up to Bushehr and Monde River Delta.