KGZ 27 Son-Kul Lake key biodiversity area

Ruddy Shelduck (Tadorna ferruginea)

Biological description of the species: Big duck. In all outfits, the plumage is dominated by a bright red color, which makes it possible to accurately distinguish the shelduck from other anseriformes. On the wing there is a green "mirror" and a large white field. The male has a narrow black collar; this collar is absent in the autumn coloration. The female is somewhat duller, whitish than the male. Juveniles are even more faded, brownish above. Weight 1000-1600 g, length 61-67, male wing 35.4-40.0, female 32.1-36.9, wingspan 121-145 cm.
Biology: Nesting migratory bird. Inhabits steppes and deserts near fresh and salty lakes, ponds and intermittent drying puddles, as well as in rocky mountains near lakes, usually poorly forested, at altitudes up to 3000 m in the Tien Shan mountains and up to 2000 m in Altai. During the migration it occurs mainly on lakes, also visits both mowed and unmowed grain fields. Appears in mid-February or March in the south of Kazakhstan in spring, and in April in the northern regions. It flies in pairs or small flocks of up to ten birds. Breeds in separate pairs, often close to each other. Sometimes it nests up to 10 km from the water, in which case the young chicks have to cover this distance on foot while going to the water. Parents accompany the chicks, but many die or become victims of predators. Ogar nests are built underground, in the burrows of mammals (mainly foxes, corsacs, marmots and wolves) or under stones in rocks, in hollows of poplars, or, rarely, in old haystacks. Clutch of 7-17, more often 9-12 eggs is produced in early April - mid-May. Only the female incubates, the male guards her, being nearby. Chicks are born in mid-May - late June. Both parents nurse the young until they are ready to fly, until mid-July - the first decade of August.
Before departure, very often shelducks feed on mowed fields. In autumn, flocks of 50 or more birds fly away, mainly in September, the latest records of Ogar encounters date back to the end of October - the end of November.
Information sources:
Gavrilov E. I., Gavrilov A. E. "The Birds of Kazakhstan". Almaty, 2005. E.I. Gavrilov. "Fauna and spreading of birds in Kazakhstan". Almaty, 1999. V.K. Ryabitsev. "Birds of the Urals, the Urals and Western Siberia". Ekaterinburg. Publishing House of the Ural University, 2000.
https://birds.kg/v2taxon.php?s=32&l=ru
Photo source: https://kyrgyzstan.birding.day/v2taxon.php?s=32&l=ru



Taraxacum syrtorum

Genus: Dandelion - family: Compositae - order: Asteraceae - class: Dicotyledonous - division: Floral
Botanical description of the genus:
Taraxacum is a large genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae, which consists of the species commonly known as dandelions. The plant thrives in temperate regions and can be found in yards, gardens, roadsides, crops, and many other habitats. Like other members of the Asteraceae family, they have very small flowers clustered together into a complex flower head. Partly because of their abundance, along with the fact that dandelions are a generalist species, they are one of the most important early spring nectar sources for a wide range of pollinators.
Typically, the leaves are 50-250 mm long, simple, lobate-pinnately dissected and form a basal rosette above a central taproot. The flower heads are yellow-orange in color and are open during the day but closed at night. The heads grow singly on a broken stem (petiole), which is usually leafless and rises 10-100 mm above the leaves. The stems and leaves release white, milky latex when broken. The rosette can produce several flowering stems at the same time. The flower heads are 20-50 mm in diameter and consist entirely of ray inflorescences.
The flower heads mature into spherical seed heads containing many single-seeded fruits called achenes. Each achene is attached to a papilloma of thin hair-like material that allows it to be disseminated over long distances by the wind.
Sources of information: https://openfito.ru/vids/vid/70252
https://translated.turbopages.org/proxy_u/en-ru.ru.6415fa22-65e9385b-fa343a8c-74722d776562/https/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taraxacum
Source of photo: https://www.plantarium.ru/page/view/item/2181.html



Common Saker Falcon (Falco cherrug)

Other names: Turkestan saker falcon.
Status: The saker falcon is listed in the International Red Book (category IV) as an endangered species. The number of the species has decreased sharply over the past 5 years in Kyrgyzstan.
Description. In size and build it is very similar to the gyrfalcon (almost never found together), a little smaller. The main color tone is reddish-gray, lighter underneath, most often fawn or close to it, with longitudinal dark streaks. It differs from the peregrine falcon in its reddish coloration, the absence of distinct black “whiskers,” and the light top of the head. Males and females are colored similarly, females are larger. The legs, cere and leathery ring around the eye are yellow. Juveniles are similar to adults, but are generally darker, with a denser dark mottled pattern underneath being especially noticeable; the legs, cere and eye ring are bluish-gray. The flight is strong, but they usually fly with infrequent flaps, alternating active flight with gliding. Sometimes they “shake” like a kestrel. They often soar, and quite high. Weight of males 730-950, females - 970-1300 g, length 42-59, wing of males 34.7-37.2, females - 38.6-42.3, wingspan - 102-129 cm.
National distribution. In Kyrgyzstan, it nests exclusively in the mountainous part of the country, and at an altitude of at least 1300-1500 m. It goes up to 3000 m in the vertical direction. During hunting, it also appears in lower-lying areas.
Number. The total number has not been established. Rare view. The number is declining everywhere.
Habitat. Middle and upper mountain belt, from 1300 to 3000 m above sea level. Low desert mountains and dry foothills of large ranges, river canyons, chinks, tugai, floodplain forests, mixed spruce forests, rocks and cliffs.
In Kyrgyzstan, the nominate subspecies Falco cherrug JF Gray, 1834 occurs on migration and in winter. The remaining subspecies are sedentary: Fc milvipes Jerdon, 1871, Fc coatsi, Dementiev, 1945, Fc hendersoni Hume, 1871.
In Kazakhstan, it lives in steppes and deserts, in areas with the presence of individual trees or groves, power lines, geodetic towers; as well as in chinks, near river cliffs, in rocky outcrops, and gorges in the mountains. The proximity of the habitat of a large number of rodents and birds, which are the main food of saker falcons, is a necessary condition for nesting both on the plains and in the mountains.
Lifestyle. A sedentary nomadic bird. The saker falcon hunts in open areas where there are trees or rocks from which it is convenient to look out for prey. Having seen a suitable object, the saker falcon hovers over the prey in flight, and then dives down at high speed or catches the prey in horizontal flight. Saker falcons never hunt near the nest and always fly away to significant distances (up to 20 km). This feature of saker falcons is often used by small birds. They live quietly and reproduce in the neighborhood, feeling protected because... other birds of prey do not hunt in the Saker Falcon's nesting territory. In the wild, saker falcons have virtually no enemies other than humans.
Nutrition. Saker falcons feed mainly on small mammals: gophers, pikas, and less often large lizards. Can catch hares, marmots and small passerine birds.
Reproduction. Monogamous bird with pronounced nesting conservatism. Appears in breeding areas from late March to April. It nests in separate pairs at a distance of at least 300-400 m (usually 1-10 km or more) from each other; nests can be located on a tree, on a rock or a pole. One nest is used for several years, but if there is no shortage of nests suitable for breeding, the nest is changed annually. Laying of 2-6 (usually 3-5) eggs occurs from late March to May, the chicks hatch in 33-35 days. Only the female incubates for 30 days, the male brings food for the female and initially for the chicks. Chicks are born from early May to early June. Both parents feed the young, which fledge at the age of 45 days, in late May - July. Autumn migration begins in late August - September.
Limiting factors. Habitat degradation as a result of human economic activity. Predation of nests by removing chicks for the purpose of sale. Catching. Gipel on power line supports. Recently, the saker falcon was common, but currently, due to the uncontrolled capture of saker falcons in the wild over the past 10-15 years by Arab poachers and their accomplices from Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, the saker falcon has become a rare breeding bird.
Existing security measures: Listed in the Red Book of the USSR (1984). The species is protected by the Red Book of Kyrgyzstan in the country's reserves. It is listed in Appendix II of CITES, Appendix II of the Bonn Convention, Appendix II of the Berne Convention. The bird is endangered due to rapid population decline in Central Asian breeding territories.
Recommended security measures: Identify nesting sites and strengthen their protection. Ban the capture of falcons. Create a network of protected areas in the main nesting areas. Find out the total size and status of the population in Kyrgyzstan. Create a captive breeding nursery.
Breeding (captivity)). There are several captive breeding projects in the United States, Canada and Europe. Successfully bred in the Kyrgyz State Game Management Agency of the USSR Ministry of Agriculture in 1979.
Information sources: https://birds.kg/v2taxon.php?s=84&l=ru, https://redbookrf.ru/baloban-falco-cherrug
Gavrilov EI, Gavrilov AE "The Birds of Kazakhstan". Almaty, 2005. E.I. Gavrilov. "Fauna and distribution of birds of Kazakhstan." Almaty, 1999. V.K. Ryabitsev. "Birds of the Urals, the Urals and Western Siberia." Ekaterinburg. Publishing house of the Ural University, 2000.
Photo source: https://redbookrf.ru/baloban-falco-cherrug



Common Pochard (Aythya ferina)

Biological description of the species: Medium sized duck. In spring, the male has a bright red head, chest and the very front of the back are black, the sides of the body and back are light bluish-gray, with a fine transverse streaky pattern. The male sitting on the water has light bluish-gray sides and back. In spring, the male can only be confused with the red-nosed duck, from which it should be distinguished by its blue and black beak, the absence of white on the wing and the black stripe along the belly. The drake's summer plumage retains the nuptial pattern, but in a very "muted" form, with brown feathers instead of black on the chest and around the tail, the head is browner than in the spring, but the ruddy color is clearly visible, light blue sides and back also with a brown coating . The female is mostly brown or reddish-brown, individual variations are very pronounced, with variously expressed lightening around the beak (but not in the form of a white ring!), on the cheeks, near the eyes, on the throat, there may be a light stripe behind the eye. The back and sides almost always have more or less feathers with a light gray streaky pattern. In all birds the mirror is light gray, slightly different from the rest of the wing. The eyes of the male are red, the eyes of the female and the young are brown. The beak of the male is blue and black, the beak of the female is gray. All paws are gray. The young are similar to the female, but with more monotonously pale cheeks and sides of the neck, less gray with a transverse pattern on the back and sides, and more striped or spotted underparts. Already in the first autumn, males are grayer than females. The female and all autumn juveniles are clearly distinguished from other ducks and the red-nosed duck by the absence of a white speculum. Males and females are similar in size, the usual weight is 800-1200 g, length 42-49, wing 18.5-22.3, span 72-82 cm.
Biology: Common breeding bird and numerous on migration. It lives on fresh and salty steppe lakes and rivers heavily overgrown with reeds, preferring deep reservoirs; it also nests in the mountains at altitudes up to 1500 m in Altai. Appears somewhat later than dabbling ducks, in early March - mid-April. It flies in independent flocks of several dozen to 100-150 birds. As a rule, the flight ends by mid-May. The nest is located in reed thickets, in shallow water or on meadow hummocks, and in flooded forests; the nest is built from dry reed leaves and other vegetation and is lined with down. A clutch of 5-14 eggs is produced from late April to late June. The female incubates the clutch for 24-26 days. Chicks are born from late May to early July, and begin to fly in late July - late August. After the females begin incubation, the males gather in large, deep lakes to moult (from late May to mid-July). The autumn migration begins in September, the main flow of migration occurs at the end of September - October; Some birds linger until November, when water bodies begin to freeze.
Information sources
Gavrilov E.I. Fauna and distribution of birds in Kazakhstan. Almaty, 1999.
Ryabitsev V.K. "Birds of the Urals, the Urals and Western Siberia." Ekaterinburg. Publishing house of the Ural University, 2000.
Photo source: https://kyrgyzstan.birding.day/v2taxon.php?s=43&l=ru