State: BurgasArea: 68811,23 ха
Ownership: state - 41%; municipality - 30%; private - 29%;
Description:
The area covers the easternmost parts of the Balkan Mountain from the village of Panitsovo on the west to cape Emine on the east. To the north it reaches the valley of the Dvoinitsa river and to the south – the villages of Aheloy and Kableshkovo, covering the northern part of the Burgas bay too. At Cape Emine the seashore is steep and rocky. The shore itself is a narrow gravel strip, above which the cliff towers. The region’s vegetation is dominated by xerothermal grass associations of Dichantium ischaemum, Poa bulbosa, etc. The slopes and ravines are covered by scattered shrubs of Paliurus spina-christi and secondary oak forests Quercus spp. (Bondev 1991). The mountain part is covered mainly by broadleaved forests. The plain part is mainly farmland with isolated spots of natural vegetation and several small wetlands. The site includes also the shallow marine waters of the northern part of Burgas Bay that cover 26% of the area.
Birds:
The territory of Emine supports 218 bird species, 60 of which are listed in the Red Data Book for Bulgaria (1985). Of the birds occurring there 96 species are of European conservation concern (SPEC) (BirdLife International, 2004), 8 of them being listed in category SPEC 1 as globally threatened, 29 in SPEC 2 and 59 in SPEC 3 as species threatened in Europe. The area provides suitable habitats for 79 species, included in Annex 2 of the Biodiversity Act, which need special conservation measures, of which 73 are listed also in Annex I of the Birds Directive. It is located on the Via Pontica migration flyway and has international importance as a typical bottleneck migration site for the pelicans, storks and birds of prey that use it. Before crossing the Balkan Mountain the migrating birds concentrate precisely in this spot, as it is the lowest part of the mountain and the easiest obstacle to overcome. The storks and pelicans often fly directly across Burgas bay. The forest is used by migrants – mainly birds of prey – as a roosting and feeding place. The plain terrain south of the mountain slopes is used by roosting and passing migrants to rise with the help of air thermals. The rocky cliffs and the marine area of Emine are one of the few in Bulgaria where the Mediterranean Shearwater Puffinus yelkouan regularly occurs. The region is one of the few in Bulgaria where the Osprey Pandion haliaetus breeds. Emine is one of the most important breeding sites in the country on a European Union scale also for the Olive-tree warbler Hippolais olivetorum, Woodlark Lullula arborea, Semi-collared Flycatcher Ficedula semitorquata, Middle Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos medius, Roller Coracias garrulus, Lesser Spotted Eagle Aquila pomarina, Levant Sparrowhawk Accipiter brevipes, Pied Wheatear Oenanthe pleshanka, as well as for the Common Tern Sterna hirundo and Little Tern S. albifrons. During the winter the marine area of the site holds significant numbers of the Black-throated Diver Gavia arctica, Pochard Aythya ferina, etc.
Threats:
Because the area is situated on the Black Sea it is directly threatened by building up activities as well as increasing tourist pressure. One of the biggest summer resorts along the Black Sea coast – the Sunny Beach is situated within the area. Because of the rapid development of the resort and the intensive building activities in the adjacent territories part of the existing sand dunes along the coast, as well as grasslands and patches of forests are already destroyed. Illegal extraction of sands from the sand dunes, including in the protected areas further destroy these habitats. The northern coastal part of the site rapidly started to be built up in spite of the opposition by local communities. The pressure of tourism to the area is increasing every year not only on the coastal parts but also inland and in the mountains. “Off road” driving and tourism have become very popular in the open mountain areas and have started to degrade the grassland habitats. An international road crosses the Emine and significantly affects the surrounding territories in the lowland part of the site, especially by pollution and building up along the road. Illegal cutting in the forests and hunting cause disturbance to birds. Particularly dangerous for migrating birds are the plans for development of wind turbine farms both in lowland south of the mountain and on the mountain hills. The wind turbine farms will cause disturbed movement and fragmentation of the habitats used by migratory birds. They will be a barrier for thousands of migratory soaring birds and night migrants on their flyway to the south and north and will cause significant mortality of birds and further decline in their populations. The marine areas are subject to very intensive fishing, including stationary and floating nets. Especially, the practice of trawling for marine animals and fishes destroys marine ecosystems and degrades habitats for seabirds. The farmlands are subject to intensive agriculture with significant use of chemicals, which affects farmland birds.
Legal protection:
Nevertheless of the big territory of Emine, only 2.4% of its area is under protection by the national nature conservation legislation. Eight protected areas are designated there. One of them “Koketreis” is marine one and it was designated in 2001 to protect the sand deposit area in Burgas Bay. Two of the protected areas are designated to protect the sand dunes, and the others are designated to protect the threatened habitats, plants and animal species. Three CORINE Sites appointed in 1998 overlap at about 80% the current territory of Emine. In 1997 the Emine cape was designated as Important Bird Area by Bird Life International. In 2005 the territory of the IBA was significantly enlarged to the present area in order to cover the most important habitats and corridors for migratory birds in the region, as well as to protect valuable habitats of birds species threatened at European scale.
