Area: 91388,98 ха
Ownership: state - 48%; municipality - 20%; private - 32%;
Description:
The area corresponds to that of the geographic region of Ludogorie but covers also parts of western Dobrudzha. It is located in North-eastern Bulgaria. It includes the territories of 14 municipalities in the districts of Ruse, Silistra and Razgrad. The relief is plain-hilly with the typical forms of canyon-like dry riverbeds, loess surfaces and karst fields. Half of the area’s territory is occupied by broadleaved forests and the other half – by farmland with a small share of pastures. The forests are mixed – Tilia tomentosa combined with Carpinus betulus or Quercus cerris, at places with Quercus dalechampii, Acer campestre. Coppice forests prevail. There are also big plots of artificial plantations of acacia Robinia pseudoacacia. The grass associations are xerothermal, dominated by Dichantium ischaemum, Poa bulbosa, Poa concinna, Chrysopogon gryllus and ephemeral or meso-xerothermal species around the settlements.
Birds:
The area supports 115 bird species, mainly breeding ones, 22 of which are listed in the Red Data Book for Bulgaria (1985). Of the birds occurring there 51 species are of European conservation concern (SPEC) (BirdLife International, 2004), 2 of them being listed in category SPEC 1 as globally threatened (the Imperial Eagle Aquila heliaca and the Corncrake Crex crex), 18 in SPEC 2 and 32 in SPEC 3 as species threatened in Europe. The area provides suitable habitats for 31 species, included in Annex 2 of the Biodiversity Act, which need special conservation measures, of which 29 are listed also in Annex I of the Birds Directive. The Ludogorie is one of the most important site in the country on a European Union scale for the conservation of a complex of 9 species that breed there - Lesser Spotted Eagle Aquila pomarina, Black Kite Milvus migrans, Long-legged Buzzard Buteo rufinus, Ruddy Shelduck Tadorna ferruginea, Woodlark Lullula arborea, Ortolan Bunting Emberiza hortulana, Nightjar Caprimulgus europaeus, Roller Coracias garrulus and the Lesser Grey Shrike Lanius minor. Most of these species prefer borderline habitats between woodland and open areas or mosaic habitats. A lot of birds of prey also breed in Ludogorie in considerable numbers, using the forest and rocky dry river valleys for nesting and the grassland and arable land for feeding there.
Threats:
The Ludogorie is surrounded by arable land and are partly isolated from other areas, which hold similar habitats, except the Harsovska Reka IBA situated close to its eastern borders. Because of the settlements situated close to the area there is an easy access to certain parts of the area. The area is sensitive to human activities which cause disturbance to birds, especially to those which nest on the rocks – rock climbing, gliding, hang-gliding, illegal treasure hunting, tourism activities during the breeding season. Hunting activities and poaching also cause disturbance to birds. Cutting activities in the forests, including clear cuts, as well as burning of forests degrade the forest habitats and disturb the birds during the breeding season. The intensive agriculture with use of fertilizers, pesticides, insecticides and even poison has direct negative impact on birds and their food base. Reduction in grazing following by succession, as well as conversion of pastures to arable lands cause loss of grassland habitats for the birds. The dry grasslands are particularly vulnerable to fires both natural and artificial burning of pastures.
Legal protection:
The territory of Ludogorie is not protected by the national nature conservation legislation. There are only three protected areas designated for preservation of typical landscapes, which cover much less then 1% of the site’s territory. About 40% of the area is covered by Ludogorie CORINE Site, which was designated in 1998 because of its European value for rare and threatened habitats, plant and animal species, including birds. In 2005 it was designated also as Important Bird Area by BirdLife International.
