A new record of Little Bustard in Coastal Dobrudzha
28.01.2012
On 25 January 2012 field ornithologists of the BSPB “Safe Ground for Redbreasts” project team, Mladen Vasilev and Stoyan Nikolov, observed in the region of Coastal Dobrudzha another bird of a species rare for the country - a Little Bustard (Tetrax tetrax). This was the second record of the species this winter and the third since 2001 in Bulgaria. Globally, the Little Bustard is a near threatened species, and because of the serious decrease of its West -European population, it is listed in SPEC1 Vulnerable.
In Bulgaria the species used to occur until the 1960-s, the last breeding record being of 1975. After its disappearance as a breeding species it has been only a rare winter visitor, the birds coming most probably from Ukraine. Since the 19th c. the species has become extinct in 11 European states, its most numerous population in Europe being on the Iberian Peninsula. The Little Bustard inhabits mainly steppe habitats, but may get accustomed to extensively cultivated arable lands and pastures. Among the main reasons for its decrease is the destruction and fragmentation of habitats, as well as the use of pesticides, collision with power lines and wind turbines and illegal hunting.
We are concerned also because the bird was observed in the immediate proximity of an area densely packed with wind turbines, which are especially dangerous for such a poor flier as the Little Bustard. At the same time this observation comes only a few days after another very rare for our fauna species, a Great Bustard, was shot by poachers in the same region. The bird has managed to survive for more than a month and we hope that the heavy hunting pressure in the end of the hunting season will not lead to another tragic end like that of its bigger relative – the Great Bustard.
On 25 January 2012 field ornithologists of the BSPB “Safe Ground for Redbreasts” project team, Mladen Vasilev and Stoyan Nikolov, observed in the region of Coastal Dobrudzha another bird of a species rare for the country - a Little Bustard (Tetrax tetrax). This was the second record of the species this winter and the third since 2001 in Bulgaria. Globally, the Little Bustard is a near threatened species, and because of the serious decrease of its West -European population, it is listed in SPEC1 Vulnerable.
In Bulgaria the species used to occur until the 1960-s, the last breeding record being of 1975. After its disappearance as a breeding species it has been only a rare winter visitor, the birds coming most probably from Ukraine. Since the 19th c. the species has become extinct in 11 European states, its most numerous population in Europe being on the Iberian Peninsula. The Little Bustard inhabits mainly steppe habitats, but may get accustomed to extensively cultivated arable lands and pastures. Among the main reasons for its decrease is the destruction and fragmentation of habitats, as well as the use of pesticides, collision with power lines and wind turbines and illegal hunting.
We are concerned also because the bird was observed in the immediate proximity of an area densely packed with wind turbines, which are especially dangerous for such a poor flier as the Little Bustard. At the same time this observation comes only a few days after another very rare for our fauna species, a Great Bustard, was shot by poachers in the same region. The bird has managed to survive for more than a month and we hope that the heavy hunting pressure in the end of the hunting season will not lead to another tragic end like that of its bigger relative – the Great Bustard.
