State: DobrichArea: 3355,90 ха
Ownership: state - 61%; municipality - 12%; private - 27%;
Description:
A coastal firth freshwater-brakish lake of natural origin, fringed by extensive reedbeds. It is located in north-eastern Bulgaria, in a region of Sarmatian limestones, 6 km from the border with Romania, to the east of the village of Durankulak. The lake is surrounded by farmland and steppe territories. Sand dunes and beach separate it from the sea on the east. Two islands, one of which is an archaeological site, are located in the lake’s south-western open water mirror. The lake’s water balance is determined mainly by underground waters and rainfalls. In strong sea storms seawater may enter the lake through the sand strip. The main habitats are the open water areas and the huge massifs of vascular hygrophyte vegetation, covering mainly the northern (Eagle Marsh) and south-western (Vaklino Arm) parts of the lake, as well as the marsh on its south-eastern side. They are dominated by Phragmites australis, Typha angustifolia, Typha latifolia and Shoenoplectus triqueter. Around the lake’s south-western part there are shrub associations of Paliurus spina-christi, Crataegus monogyna, Rosa canina and artificial plantations of poplar Populus sp., Fraxinus oxycarpa, Fraxinus ornus, Prunus machaleb. Groups of White Willow Salix alba trees have naturally appeared among the reedbeds in the lake’s Vaklino Arm.
Birds:
Durankulak lake and its adjacent territories support 260 bird species, 72 of which are listed in the Red Data Book for Bulgaria (1985). Of the birds occurring there 110 species are of European conservation concern (SPEC) (BirdLife International, 2004), 14 of them being listed in category SPEC 1 as globally threatened, 27 in SPEC 2 and 69 in SPEC 3 as species threatened in Europe. The area provides suitable habitats for 95 species, included in Annex 2 of the Biodiversity Act, which need special conservation measures, of which 91 are listed also in Annex I of the Birds Directive. Durankulak lake is a site of global importance for the wintering waterfowl, mainly because of the great concentrations of geese. Along with the White-fronted Goose Anser albifrons, considerable numbers of Red-breasted Geese Branta ruficollis spend the winter there. In January and February almost the entire global population of this species stays in the lakes of Shabla and Durankulak, which makes them one of the most important wetland areas in the world. . The Lesser White-fronted Goose /Anser erythropus/ regularly occurs among the numerous goose flocks. The lake is one of the places with great winter concentrations of Mallard Anas platyrhynchos in the country. It is one of the few places in Bulgaria where the Red-throated Diver Gavia stellata, Demoiselle Crane Antropoides virgo and the Little Bustard Tetrax tetrax have been recorded. As the lake is located on the Via Pontica migration flyway and close to the Danube delta, it is one of the most important stations in the bird migration along the Bulgarian Black Sea coast. Especially numerous are the storks Ciconiiformes, geese Anseriformes and plovers Charadriiformes. On migration the area is used as a roost by the White Pelican Pelecanus onocrotalus, the Pygmy Cormorant Phalacrocorax pygmeus and single Greater Spotted Eagles Aquila clanga. The globally threatened Aquatic Warbler Acrocephalus paludicola recorded in the wetland on migration. Less numerous, both in winter and on migration, are the White-headed Duck Oxyura leucocephala and the Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus (Ivanov, 1993). The coastal marine waters infront of the lake are used by the Mediterranean Shearwater Puffinus yelkouan for foraging. The lake is one of the five most important sites in the country for the breeding Purple Heron Ardea purpurea, Kentish Plover Charadrius alexandrinus, the Marsh Harrier Circus aeruginosus, the Collared Pratincole Glareola pratincola, the Little Crake Porzana parva, the Little Tern Sterna albifrons and the Red-footed Falcon Falco vespertinus. Although less numerous, the globally threatened Ferruginous Duck Aythya nyroca also breeds in the area, along with some other rare and threatened species, like the Bittern Botaurus stellaris, the Stone Curlew Burchinus oedicnemus and the Tawny Pipit Anthus campestris.
Threats:
The area of Durankulak Lake is used water abstraction for irrigation purposes, commercial fishing and collecting of crayfish, angling, cattle sheep and goat grazing, small-size reed cutting, intensive agriculture (vegetables, grain crops), recreation, small-size forestry, hunting out of the protected area. Over-abstraction of waters for irrigation damage the water balance of the lake. The illegal fishing and hunting and sand extraction from the sand dunes, as well as the non-regulated grazing in the water-fringe vegetation cause habitat destruction and disturbance for the biodiversity. The legal hunting activities out of the protected area permanently chases the wintering geese from the arable lands located around the northern part of the lake which are the most preferable feeding areas for the geese. Due to intensive agricultural activities in the arable lands neighbouring the lake and intensive livestock breeding the concentration of biogens (esp. ammonium and phosphates) and organic matters in the lake have drastically increasing in recent decades. Intensive agricultural activities in the catchment area of the lake, and those in the 70s and the 80s in particular, involving the use of big quantities of phosphates and nitrates, the wrong storage of fertilizers and the absence of communal waters treatment have also seriously contributed to increasing the biogenic elements in the lake. Unregulated water pumping for drinking and irrigation needs causes unnatural reduction in the water level. The excessive biogenic content and the disturbance of the natural water level in the lake is the main reason for the acceleration of the euthrophication processes and disturbing the water ecosystem’s equilibrium. Recently the area is under big pressure by plans for development of new recreation facilities, as well as construction of wind turbine farms. The intensive development of tourism connected to a building of new hotels will cause deterioration and even loss of valuable habitats, as well as significant human pressure and disturbance to birds, which is much higher than the carrying capacity of the wetland. Even now a lot of tourists enter the protected area through the sand dunes during the breeding season and cause pollution of habitats and disturbance to birds. 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.
Legal protection:
The Durankulak Lake itself was designated as protected area in 1983 for the protection of threatened species of waterfowl. It covers about 13% of the territory of the proposed SPA. A management plan of the protected area has been adopted. Since 1984 the lake was designated as Wetland of International Importance under the Ramsar Convention. In 1989 the area was designated as Important Bird Area by BirdLife International. In 1998 about 23% of the site become CORINE Site because of its European value for rare and threatened habitats, plant and animal species, including birds.
