A training seminar was held in Lemos (Greece), near Prespa Lake, on June 22-23 as part of the “Pelican Way of LIFE” project. The workshop is specially organized for experts from Albania, Northern Macedonia, Montenegro, and Turkey.
The aim of the seminar was to train participants in the different methods for identifying the age and sex of Dalmatian pelicans, to discuss methods and schemes for monitoring and research, as well as to discuss other important activities, such as the ringing and the installation of satellite transmitters.
Hosts and speakers of the event were experts from the Society for the Protection of Prespa (SPP) – Dr. Giorgos Catsadorakis and Dr. Olga Alexandrou, who have many years of experience in conservation activities related to the protection of Dalmatians pelican. The training seminar was attended by 17 experts from Bulgaria (BSPB), Albania (Protection and Preservation of Natural Environment in Albania, Albanian Ornithological Society, Divjaka-Karavasta National Park and Regional Administration of the Protected Areas Fieri Region), Northern Macedonia (Macedonian Ecological Society and National Park Galicica) and Montenegro (Center for Protection and Research of Birds of Montenegro and Natural History Museum of Montenegro). All participants shared interesting presentations about the state of the population of Dalmatian pelicans in different countries and the main conservation measures held there.
SPP experts conducted a series of lectures on the Dalmatian Pelican – age and sex determination, research and monitoring methods, methods for ringing and placement of transmitters, and features in the construction of artificial nesting platforms. The team of the Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds presented the state of the breeding population of the Dalmatian Pelican in the country, as well as its experience in the activities of ringing and tagging the birds with satellite transmitters.
After the theoretical part, the participants visited the lake Malka Prespa, where they managed to observe the nesting Dalmatian pelicans.
The project Conservation of the Dalmatian pelican along the Black-Sea Mediterranean Flyway project (“Pelican Way of LIFE”) (LIFE18 NAT/NL/000716) is funded by the EU LIFE programme. The project is coordinated by Rewilding Europe, in partnership with the Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds, the Romanian Ornithological Society (SOR), the Hellenic Ornithological Society (HOS), the Persina Nature Park Directorate – Belene, Rewilding Ukraine and Rewilding Danube Delta.