A RECORD COUNT OF RED-BREASTS IN BULGARIA DURING THE IWC
16.01.2013

The International Waterbird Census last weekend was marked by a record count of wintering Red-breasted Geese in Bulgaria. On 13 January, teams from BSPB/BirdLife Bulgaria and WWT undertook an especially comprehensive count, covering more than 40km of coastline as well as the main roosts at Shabla and Durankulak SPAs. The provisional total of 54,000 Red-breasts is the highest winter count since the late 1990s. The current population estimate is 50,000 individuals, which suggests practically the whole global population was in Bulgarian Dobrudzha during the IWC count. Colleagues at our Romanian partner ROS/BirdLife Romania found just 800 birds in the traditional wintering grounds in the Danube Delta, furthering supporting the idea that the whole population was concentrated in northeast Bulgaria.

Some 230,000 White-fronted Geese were also counted in Dobrudzha, which accounts for 43% of the Ponto-Anatolian Flyway population of this species. Counts from elsewhere in Bulgaria bring the national total to almost 400,000 birds, nearly 75% of the population.

  These high numbers followed a cold spell with blizzards in north Bulgaria immediately prior to the count. The geese were found practically everywhere from Kaliakra SPA in the south to the border with Romania. The lakes of Shabla and Durankulak were largely frozen and, combined with hunting activity till late in the evening, prevented many of the birds roosting there.

Prior to the IWC count, another globally threatened species was observed at Durankulak - the Lesser White-fronted Goose (Anser erythropus).

The Waterbird Census in Northeastern Bulgaria was carried out in the framework of the BSPB LIFE+ project "Safe Ground for Redbreasts", funded by the EU.