Thousands of flamingos born in Tuz Lake

AKSARAY – Anadolu Agency

The Lake Tuz, threteaned with drying in a few years, is known as a haven for flamingos.

Thousands of flamingo chicks hatched in Tuz Lake, which is home to the largest flamingo colony in Mediterranean countries. The chicks have begun to reach the gathering area.

The Nature Association Scientific Director Süreyya İsfendiyaroğlu said the Tuz Lake in the middle of the Anatolian steppe was quite the haven for flamingos.

He said the association had been following flamingos since 2003, adding, “We closely follow the Tuz Lake and Gediz Delta, where flamingos incubate. We especially count the number of chicks and examine the colonies’ situation.”

Noting that the Tuz Lake was one of the most important breeding grounds in the world for flamingos, İsfendiyaroğlu said the following: “When immigrating, flamingos prefer fresh wetland areas for incubation areas. Those in Tuz Lake go to other lakes around the area in order to find food. This is why we observe flamingos in many places in Anatolia. They incubate in places away from people. We have observed that the number of flamingo chicks is low when the water level is low in the lake. Their number increases when the water level is high.”

He said this year thousands of flamingos were born in Tuz Lake, adding, “We will take a census to determine the number of flamingo chicks that were born in the lake this year. We fly over the Tuz Lake every year and take photos to count their number. The data changes every year. It was 5,000 in 2005; 4,000 in 2007; 14,644 in 2009; 18,418 in 2011; and 20,275 in 2012, which was recorded as the highest-ever number in the world.”

Speaking about drought, İsfendiyaroğlu said a dry year could cause the deaths of the flamingo chicks.