Over the past two months, two Dalmatian pelicans tagged with GPS transmitters have died. At the end of January, the young female pelican Stella was found dead in the area of Lake Mandrа near Burgas in Bulgaria, and a few weeks later, in the area of Lake Golovița in Romania, located north of the city of Constanța, the body of the adult female pelican Plamena was discovered. In both cases, the cause of death was entanglement in fishing nets, likely followed by drowning of the birds.

Successfully initiating for the fourth consecutive year, the Dalmatian pelicans have nested in the “Kalimok-Brushlen” Protected Area and other wetlands of Bulgaria.

In late 2023, experts from the Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds and Elektrorazpredelenie Yug EAD made history by installing reflective markers for birds, known as diverters, along a 20 kV overhead power line. This groundbreaking initiative, the first of its kind in Bulgaria, utilized drone technology for the installation.

In late December, a joint team of experts and volunteers from the Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds (BSPB) and a representative of the Tutrakan Tourism Development Association carried out activities to enhance nesting conditions for the protected Dalmatian Pelican in the Kalimok-Brushlen Protected Area.

An international census of wintering Dalmatian pelicans took place on the Balkan Peninsula in late November and mid-December. The purpose was to collect data on the number and distribution of endangered Dalmatian pelicans in the region.

At the end of November and the beginning of December, a team from the Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds (BSPB) captured and successfully ringed four Dalmatian pelicans, placing satellite transmitters on three of them. The birds were tagged in the Burgas Lakes area.

In late November, the team of experts and volunteers from the Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds (BSPB) successfully executed various activities aimed at enhancing the nesting conditions for the protected Dalmatian Pelican within the “Mandra – Poda” Special Protection Area (BG0000271).

The second volunteer conservation camp organized by the Directorate of the “Persina” Nature Park as part of the “Pelican Way of Life” initiative has successfully concluded. It was attended by students from the Erasmus+ project at “Dimcho Debelianov” High School in Belene.

At the end of August, a team from the Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds (BSPB) successfully captured and tagged an adult male Great White Pelican with a satellite transmitter in the Burgas Lake area. Furthermore, the team also affixed a ring to an adult female pelican of the same species.

The Nature Conservation Camp “Atanasovsko Lake”, organised by the Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds (BSPB) in 2023 brought together almost 100 volunteers from August 19th to 27th for the 34th consecutive year. They dedicated their time to the preservation of nature and the well-being of birds.