Astrakhansky State Nature Reserve

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Founded in 1919 to protect the rapidly disappearing delta ecosystems, the Reserve is now famous as a kingdom of birds. Year-round the skies and shoreline forests are filled with white-tailed sea-eagles (Haliaeetus albicilla), one of 27 endangered species of birds found in the Reserve. Other endangered birds of prey include osprey (Pandion haliaetus) and Saker falcon (Falco cherrug). Mute swans (Cygnus olor), once nearly extinct in the region, have made a remarkable comeback in the 20th century, such that now thousands nest in the Volga delta, and hundreds in the Reserve. Dalmatian pelicans (Pelicanus crispus), recognizable by the curl-like tufts of feathers on their heads, can regularly be seen skimming the surface of the water.

The Volga delta offers one of the world’s most important nesting grounds for water birds. Great cormorants (Phalacrocorah carbo) build large, noisy colonies in willow trees along the riverbanks. Colonies of gulls (Chlidonias hybrida, C. niger, C.hirundo) attract carnivorous fish such as Wels catfish (Silurus glanis), which swim to the banks in the hope of making a meal of baby birds that have fallen from their nests. Sharing of nesting sites, an unusual phenomenon in nature, is characteristic in the Reserve, where great white herons and little egrets (Egretta alba, E. garzetta), glossy ibises (Plegadis falcinellus), black-crowned night herons (Nycticorax nycticorax), Eurasian spoonbills (Platalea leucorodia) and pond herons (Ardeola ralloides) frequently build nests in the same colonies.

Summer is a particularly colourful season in the Reserve, where more than 25,000 ducks spend their molting period. Mallards (Anas platyrhynchos) are the first to arrive in June, followed by northern pintails (A. acuta), green-winged teals (A. crecca), garganeys (A. querquedula), and gadwalls (A. strepera). Northern shovelers (A. clypeata) and wigeons (A. penelope) complete this annual gathering of ducks which nest deep in the wildest regions of the reserve before heading to the outer reaches of the delta near the close of August.

Away from the water, forest birds are dominant. Great titmice (Parus parus), wood pigeons (Columba palumbus), golden orioles (Oriolus oriolus), and tree sparrows (Passer montanus) nest in willows. Reed buntings (Emberiza schoeniclus), Savi’s warbler (Locustella luscinioides), and bearded tits (Panurus biarmicus) prefer to build their nests in the thick reeds. Meanwhile cuckoos (Cuculus canorus) are spread throughout the reserve, laying their eggs in unguarded nests of warblers (Acrocephalus spp.) and then abandoning them.