NTG Joined World Wetlands Day

On February 2^nd, many people of different age enjoying birds that live in the Heron colony in the town of Kardzhali. Some were regular passers-by on the New bridge, others came specially and brought their children.

With monoculars and binoculars they watched birds in flight or perched on the branches of the willows in the flooded area between the Water mirror and "Arpezos" Complex. Squacco Heron, Little Egret, Little Bittern, Night Heron, Pygmy Cormorant, etc. nest in the colony. Some of these are migratory, others spend the winter here. Common Teal ,Northern Shoveler, Eurasian Widgeon, Gadwall, Common Pochard, Ferruginous Duck, ufted Duck and Mute Swan from the wintering waterfowl in Arda were observed by the people who came on the bridge.

Most numerous in the Heron colony were the Pygmy Cormorants. During migrations and in the winter they form flocks and nest usually in mid April. Several of the inhabitants of the colony have already showed mating behavior and forming of pairs. So early formation of pairs is observed for the first time in the Heron colony in Kardzhali. Perhaps, the mild winter is the reason for this unusual behavior.

The bird watching was part of the celebration of the World Wetlands Day. The initiative is organized by New Thracian Gold (NTG) jointly with Community Center “Obedinenie 1913” and Bulgarian Society for the Protection of the Birds. With this initiative we hope to raise the public awareness for the conservation of wetlands and their wild inhabitants. Their protection is important for the biodiversity conservation, NTG Coordinator on wilderness Hristo Hristov explains.

2 February is the international date for World Wetlands Day. It marks the declaration date of the Wetlands Convention on 2 February 1971, in the Iranian city of Ramsar on the shores of the Caspian Sea. Each year since 1997 governmental agencies, non-governmental organizations, and citizens at all levels of the community seized the opportunity to raise public awareness for wetland values and benefits in general, and the Ramsar Convention in particular.

The theme for this year’s World Wetlands Day on 2 February was “Wetlands and Water Management”.

See here photos form the day