A nesting platform for pelicans has been installed in Skadar lake NP

Since 2004, defined activities and monitoring carried out by the National Parks of Montenegro, scientifically based conservation measures have been devised.
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Pelican nesting Skadar Lake, Photo: National Parks of Montenegro
Pelican nesting Skadar Lake, Photo: National Parks of Montenegro
Disclaimer: The translations are mostly done through AI translator and might not be 100% accurate.
Ažurirano: 16.11.2016. 15:05h

As part of the project "Preservation of the curly pelican, a key biodiversity species of Lake Skadar", a platform was installed yesterday in the park, in the Pančeva oka Special Reserve, which will be a long-term solution for the nesting of this species, announced the JP National Parks of Montenegro.

"Establishing a platform and buoys for the zoning of the location of the Pančeva Oka Special Reserve will enable a strict ban on activities that could in any way affect the disturbance of the pelican colony that nests in this area," the announcement states.

It is added that in previous years, the National Parks of Montenegro, in cooperation with project partners, have on several occasions installed platforms made of materials prone to deterioration, and through this project a new platform for nesting has been provided, which guarantees a solution for many years.

"The platform installed yesterday is made of high-density polyethylene (PEHD) which has proven to be an ideal material and complies with the standards provided for protected areas. Many platforms built from it have lasted for more than 50 years without any repair. This is one of the most serious programs implemented in Montenegro related to the conservation of species and habitats," states the announcement of JP National Parks of Montenegro.

Until 2014, pelicans were nesting on natural shake islands in the Special Reserve. However, the surface of free water decreases due to the process of eutrophication (overgrowth), but also a drastic increase in the level of the lake during the winter months, which due to heavy rainfall leads to the flooding of nesting grounds, leaving the pelican population without offspring.

Since 2004, the defined activities and monitoring carried out by the National Parks of Montenegro have created scientifically based conservation measures.

"The result of setting up the platforms is an increase in the number of nesting pairs of the pelican population compared to previous years. This is supported by the data from 2016, when a record number of pelicans (178 individuals) was recorded on Lake Skadar. These results are not only important for Montenegro, but and for the region, because it surpasses all the records recorded in the previous three decades. Employees from the Skadar Lake NP Protection Service, the JPNPCG Professional Service and the Natural History Museum participated in the action of setting up the platform. The project "Preservation of the curly pelican, a key biodiversity species of Skadar Lake" has been implemented for two years. The project is financed by CEPF, and the partners in the project are the Natural History Museum of Montenegro, NGO Noe conservation France, APAWA Albania, Tour du Valat - France and NGO CZIP", the statement concluded.

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