Internatwnal Wader Studies 10: 370-374 Wood SandpiperTringa glareola and Green Sandpiper Tringaochropus in Bulgaria D.N. Nankinov Nankinov,D.N. 1998.Wood Sandpiper Tringa glareola and Green Sandpiper Tringa ochropus in Bulgaria.International Wader Studies 10: 370-374. Thecurrent and historical status of WoodSandpiper Tringa glareola and Green Sandpiper Tringa ochropusin Bulgariais reviewed.Both species occur during the breeding season, but although WoodSandpipers have bred in thepast, they do not do soat present.In contrastsome tens of pairs of GreenSandpiper breed annually. Until 1992,only nine Wood Sandpipers and two Green Sandpiperswith foreignrings had been recorded in Bulgariaand neighbouring countries. Four morelocally-ringed Wood Sandpipers and two moreGreen Sandpipers were recaptured at the Atanasovskoyelake ornithological station. Green Sandpipers migrating through Bulgaria originate fromthe Balticstates, whilst Wood Sandpipers move from Scandinavia as well asfrom central Europe.The main threats to thesesandpipers are currently from wetland degradation, especially asa consequenceof pollution. D.N. Nankinov,Institute of Zoology, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Boul. Rouski, 1000 Sofia, Bulgaria. HauKuuon,]•. H. t998.•1• Trlngaglareola u qepmamTr•nga ochropus n Boarapuu. International Wader Studies 10: 370-374. Introduction Distribution of both speciesduring WoodSandpiper Tringa glareola and Green the year SandpiperTringa ochropus have not previouslybeen Winter the objectsof detailedstudy in Bulgaria.In The WoodSandpiper only occasionallyoverwinters in Bulgarianornithological literature little is found Bulgaria. Indeed,in the lasttwo decadesit hasbeen aboutthe occurrenceof thesespecies in the country recordedonly twice. (Radakoff 1878;Alleon 1886;Khristovich 1890; Reiser 1894; Collections du Musee, Sofia 1907; GreenSandpiper is a commonspecies which winters Petrov& Zlatanov1955; Boyev 1962; Boyev et al. 1964; Prostov 1964; Robel et al. 1978; Roberts 1980; throughoutthe wholecountry, near ice-free waters. Birdsconcentrate mainly at the Upper Frakialowland Petrov 1981; Nankinov 1982, 1985, 1989;Nankinov (theMaritsa river, reservoirs, ponds, ricefields), at the et al. 1997). lakesand marshesof Prichernomoryenear the Black Sea,in the valleysof the Strumaand Mestarivers and Data analysesin thispaper were collectedin the near Sofia. Winter concentrationsrarely exceedten 1970sand 1980s,including both observations and birds,most frequently as singles. resultsof ringingat two ornithologicalstations: the Atanasovskoyelake in easternBulgaria and at Rupitein south-westernBulgaria. Spring migration In the first daysof MarchWood Sandpipers start to 37O Nankinov'Wood Sandpiper Tringa glareola and Green Sandpiper Trmga ochropus m Bulgaria appearin largernumbers in thevalleys of the Sandpiperare recorded every year from the end of Struma, Marista and other rivers of southern April up to Julyin differentparts of the country, Bulgariaas well asat coastalareas (Prostov 1964). particularlyin theriver valleys. It is thoughtthat In north-easternBulgaria spring migration is visible sometens of pairsbreed each year (Nankinov 1985; in Marchand April at a varietyof wetlands(Petrov Hagemeijer& Blair 1997). & Zlatanov1955). During spring migration Wood Sandpiperis commonin thewhole country, often Autumn migration with conceritrationsof over 100 birds (up to 200on 1 During autumnmigration the WoodSandpiper May 1975at Atanasovskoyelake). Suchlarge occursat fewersites than the Green Sandpiper but concentrations have been recorded on the lakes in largernumbers. At the lakesnear Burgas(e.g. at Atanasovskoye,Burgaskoye, Mandrenskoye, and at theAtanasovskoye lake) up to 700individuals were thefishery ponds near Sokolitsa and Trud countedon 13August 1983; concentrations of 200 settlements,Plovdiv region; smaller concentrations birdscan be foundin Septemberat the were observednear Sofia, Plovdiv, Yambol, Mandrenskoye,Burgaskoye, Pomorijskoye lakes Pomorje,and Shabla. andat thefishery ponds near Trud settlement. Postbreedingmigration starts after heavy rains in GreenSandpipers are less numerous than Wood July,and birds are common near pools in Sandpipers.They occur in smallgroups, in pairs,or Dobrudzha (Petrov & Zlatanov 1955). singly.However, up to 120individuals were observedon 28April 1990at theAtanasovskoye GreenSandpipers appear alone or in smallflocks Lake. Concentrations of less than 100 birds were whichrarely exceed some tens of birds. It hasbeen recordedon otherlakes in thevicinity of the Black seenoccasionally at the Frakialowland feeding Sea,at the fisheryponds and water reservoirs of the togetherwith LapwingsVanellus vanellus and UpperFrakia lowland, in theRose Valley and in the YellowWagtails Motacillafiava on damp agricultural surroundingsof Sofia. lands. Between4 Marchand 27 May 1990waders were censusedat 14 sitesof the country(Nankinov et al. Changesin abundanceduring 1997).During thisstudy 40,802 waders of 32 the year specieswere counted, and the proportion of Wood Changesin abundanceof the two speciesshow Sandpiperand Green Sandpiper in thisnumber was somedifferences. Wood Sandpiper is presentin 1.9%and 1.6% respectively. The proportion of these Bulgariafrom the beginning of Marchto the end of speciesat lakesof theBlack Sea area was less, at November,and migrationinfluxes can be easily 0.8%and 0.35%respectively among 6,881 waders of recognisedboth in springand afterbreeding. It 19 species. doesnot seemto breedin Bulgarianowadays. Peak springmigration takes place in April when23.3% of Breedingperiod thetotal records of the specieswere recorded. In Bothspecies occur in Bulgariaduring the breeding May migrationis lessapparent (14.2% of records), season.Although these are mostly non and over- andonly 2.6% and 5.3%of speciesrecords occurred summeringbirds, some data aboutthe breeding of respectivelyin Juneand July. The heaviest bothspecies in Bulgariaare also available. migrationof WoodSandpipers takes place in In the 19thcentury the southernlimit of the August(31.5% of the total records),when most breedingrange in WoodSandpiper was situated birds can be found at the Black Sea coast. The furthersouth than at present,and the speciesbred numberdecreases in September(16.8%) and in Bulgaria(Radakoff 1879; Alleon 1886). Near Sofia especiallyin October(1.5%) and November (0.2%). on 9 June1897 two WoodSandpiper eggs were GreenSandpiper occurs in Bulgariayear-round. collected(Collection du Musee,Sophia 1907). Some Numbersdo not vary betweenthe seasonsso authorsbeheve that it is stillpossible that Wood markedlyas in WoodSandpiper; with tensor Sandpipercurrently breed in Bulgaria,in Dobrudza hundredsof birdsbeing recorded each month. or somewherenearby (Petrov & Zlatanov1955), but Birds,observed in Januaryon winteringgrounds thisis thoughtunlikely (Hagemeijer & Blair1997). comprised5.7% of the totalnumber of records. Springmigration becomes noticeable in March GreenSandpiper was formerly considered to be a (17.3%of records),and reaches the peak in April very commonbreeding species in Bulgaria (26.4%).The proportion of GreenSandpipers (Radakoff1879; Khristovich 1890), although there stayingin June(3.4% of records)is almostsimilar to weresome doubts about the reliabilityof thesedata thatin WoodSandpiper. (Reiser1894). Thereis very little information, however,about the breeding of thisspecies in In autumnWood Sandpipers are less abundant than Bulgariaduring the 20thcentury. It was found in spring:a slightincrease in number,observed in incubatingin north-easternBulgaria in the Batovoy August(12.5%) in comparisonwith July(6.8%) and river valleyin 1951(Petrov & Zlatanov1955), and September(7.9%), indicates the time of the most tenyears later - on 25June 1961 - Boyev(1962) intensemigration. found a nestwith four eggsnear Mirovo, Starozagorskyregion. Nowadays pairs of Green 371 Internattonal Wader Studies 10: 370-374 Habitat preferences appearedlater in winter in northernBulgaria. WoodSandpipers with Germanrings were recorded WoodSandpipers occur at fisheryponds, the banks alsoin Fennoscandia,Belgium, France, Spain, Italy, of smalland largerivers, at lakes,marshes, scattered Moroccoand Upper Volta (Schlenke11974).Wood riparianwoodlands, and otherkinds of wetlands Sandpipersringed on migrationin CentralEurope includingcoastal lagoons. During migration they occur also at montane water bodies. fly mostlyto the south-west(Glutz von Blotzheimet al. 1977). GreenSandpipers prefer damp woodlandsand afforested areas near water bodies such as lakes, It is probablethat someindividuals do not always marshesand canals,river floodplains;sometimes followthe same migratory route. This is suggested they canalso be foundon the openmarshes and by a recoveryof WoodSandpiper which migrated in ponds. Khristovich(1890) wrote that "it was August1963 through France, although the commonalong the Maritsa,Struma, Topolnitsa, Iskr, followingautumn it wasfound in easternEurope. Tundzha,Vcha, Yeli-Dyerye, Slivnishka and other Moreover,spring and autumnmigration routes may rivers,in winter - mostlyat the riversand unfrozen water bodies". In the mountains it reaches altitudes alsodiffer. Thus,one individual caught in spring (24April) in Italy was flying in autumn(the same of 2,400 m (Flossner1972). year)to the winteringgrounds via north-eastern Bulgaria.It canbe supposed(Nankinov 1989) that Food birdswhich cross Bulgaria in autumnreturn to their Data on diet in Bulgariaare very scarce.Near breedinggrounds through western Europe or vice Burgastown Prostov(1964) recorded that the versa.Myhrberg