Project Pelican ’99 – study of the Dalmatian pelican (Pelecanus crispus) on the Kuban coastal salt lake

Mikhail Dinkevich

A collaboration between Russian and German students, this project plans to survey the salt lakes of the Black and East Azov sea coasts for the rare Dalmatian pelican (Pelecanus rispus). The team will consolidate and update upon old and fragmented data about the distribution, population, ecology, breeding success and conservation status of the bird. The project has the vital support of local government; all results will be presented to the Krasnodar government conservation committee to design a conservation strategy for the bird. Locally, school children will be visited and informed about the regions’ nature and conservation importance.