An international ornithological expedition has started in Balkan velayat, aimed at monitoring the populations of wintering birds in the Turkmen sector of the Caspian Sea.

The team of the comprehensive expedition consists of scientists of the Ramsar Regional Initiative for Central Asia, an expert auditor of the Technology Center of the Academy of Sciences of Turkmenistan and ornithologists of the Hazar State Nature Reserve. The expedition also involves specialists of the National Institute of Deserts, Flora and Fauna, representatives of the Caspian Environmental Control Service, the Ministry of Environmental Protection of Turkmenistan and the Turkmen Agricultural University named after S.A. Niyazov.

The group's task is to systematically count the feathered inhabitants along the Caspian coast, including the Turkmenbashi Bay, which is a wetland of global significance.

During the expedition, specialists will survey 33 sites in the Turkmen sector of the Caspian Sea to identify the geography and quality of bird habitats for comparative analysis with data from previous years.

For instance, as of 2023, there were 38 species of wetland birds and their predatory birds recorded in the Turkmen sector of the Caspian Sea, belonging to 8 orders: grebes, pelecaniformes, herons, flamingos, anseriformes, falconidae, cranes and plovers.

The total number of individuals amounted to 128,669. The number of red-listed flamingos and white-headed duck has significantly increased. The expedition also recorded rare visitors to our wintering grounds and numerous residents.

This year, special attention will be paid to natural and anthropogenic factors that influence the formation of new wetland systems.

The expedition participants will survey 400 kilometers along the coastline until January 27. The route includes two stages - from the city of Turkmenbashi to Kazakhstan and from Turkmenbashi to the border with Iran.

According to the plan, the northern part of the route will be surveyed first, followed by the southern part. The group of specialists will visit the Cheleken Peninsula, where they will familiarize themselves with the ornithological and hydrological situation on the shores and adjacent waters of the Northern and Southern Cheleken Bays.

Bird counts in this area are conducted annually in January under the auspices of the Ramsar Convention on the priority areas of its Strategic Plan for 2016-2024.