Increased number of Dalmatian pelicans in Srebarna Nature Reserve

There is an increased number of Dalmatian pelican pairs in the Nature Reserve “Srebarna” this year, with an average of 20 families returning in the first warmer weeks.

The first pair of Dalmatian pelicans arrived in “Srebarna” Reserve in the middle of January, the experts said, adding that they come from the Danube Delta, where some of them spend the winter, others were for several months in Lake Kerkini in Northern Greece or in water basins in northern Turkey.

Aneliya Nikolova, Director of Preventive Activity Directorate, RIEW-Rousse: Every day there is an increase in their numbers, and we currently have between 40 and 50 pairs, that is, between 80 and 100 birds showing all signs of an active breeding season. Their necks are red, carrying cane all the time, building nests, i.e. they are preparing for this year's mission.

The Srebarna Reserve is favoured by birds because there is a lot of food around and is also sufficiently protected.

Aneliya Nikolova: Their nests are located on a reed mass that moves freely in the water, it is remote from the shores, i.e. one cannot easily reach them, this also applies to ground predators.

Unlike other bird species, Dalmatian Pelicans do not migrate to Africa. By the middle of December, they live in the warmer lakes around the Mediterranean Sea. Every year, their condition and habits are monitored by tracking rings that environmentalists have placed on the feet of the birds.