State: YambolArea: 1329,02 ха
Ownership: state - 29%; municipality - 19%; private - 52%;
Description:
Water reservoir, surrounded by low hills with arable lands, which usually does not freeze in winter. It is located in the Strandzha Mountain near the state border with Turkey, in the grounds of the village of Malko Sharkovo. The dam has an open water area with low banks and shallows sparsely overgrown with hygrophyte vegetation. A small part of its banks is covered by meadows. The surrounding hills are occupied by grass associations and agricultural lands, sown mainly with winter wheat. At places there are small woodlands.
Birds:
Malko Sharkovo reservoir is regular roosting site for wintering waterfowl. It supports 45 bird species, 16 of which are listed in the Red Data Book for Bulgaria (1985). Of the birds occurring there 14 species are of European conservation concern (SPEC) (BirdLife International, 2004), 4 of them being listed in category SPEC 1 as globally threatened, 4 in SPEC 2 and 6 in SPEC 3 as species threatened in Europe. The area provides suitable habitats for 14 species, included in Annex 2 of the Biodiversity Act, which need special conservation measures, of which 12 are listed also in Annex I of the Birds Directive. Malko Sharkovo Reservoir is a site of international importance as a wintering ground of the White-fronted Goose Anser albifrons, with up to 16 810 geese concentrating there in winter (Profirov, Yankov, Kostadinova in NOIB at BSPB; Milchev 1994). It is an important wintering ground at national scale for the Mute Swan Cygnus olor, the Whooper Swan Cygnus cygnus and the Red-breasted Goose Branta ruficollis. The Night Heron Nycticorax nycticorax breeds in the reservoir.
Threats:
The area is situated close to a settlement where intensive human activities take place. Access to the area is unrestricted. The area is sensitive to all human activities, which cause disturbance to birds, especially boats entering the reservoir before sunrise, when birds are roosting on the water. The other problem is illegal hunting of protected species, outside the hunting season and with illegal means. The agriculture activities around the reservoir, especially the use of pesticides and fertilizers, have a negative impact on the water quality. Because of the use of the reservoir for irrigation, it is threatened by temporary drainage.
Legal protection:
The area does not have legal protection under the national conservation legislation. In 1998 the area was appointed as CORINE Site because of its European value for wintering waterbirds. In 1989 the area was appointed as Important Bird Area by BirdLife International.
