Acrocephalus 113 - 114.qxd 28.3.2003 8:52 Pagel3JK Acrocephalus 23 (113-114): 139 – 140, 2002 The first breeding records of Avocets Recurvirostra avosetta for Croatia and Kopa~ki rit Prva gnezditev sabljarke Recurvirostra avosetta na Hrvaškem in v Kopaèkem ritu Alma Mikuska1 , Jozsef Mikuska1 & Tibor Mikuska2 Department of biology, University of Osijek, L. Jagera 9, HR-31000 Osijek, Croatia, e-mail: almaogresevic@yahoo.com Kopacki rit Nature Park Management Office, Ul. Petefi Sandora 33, HR-31327 Bilje, Croatia, e-mail: tmikuska@pedos.hr The Avocet Recurvirostra avosetta breeds locally in our regular monitoring programme, we again observed Europe from southern Sweden to southern Spain, two birds at the Podunavlje fishponds. From April until France and Italy, and from central Europe east to June we regularly observed from two to six Avocets, that southern Ukraine and the Black Sea and Caspian Lake we considered as migrating birds, using the area (Osieck 1994, Girard 1997). Recently, breeding has temporarily as a feeding and resting site. However, when been confirmed in Slovenia on Se~ovlje saltpans Black-winged Stilt Himantopus himantopus started (Geister 2001). Through the temperate climatic breeding, also for the first time in Kopa~ki rit, on the zones, the species’ main breeding habitats are sandy or muddy island in the same shallow pond, it raised our muddy shores of shallow saline and brackish waters in expectations that Avocets would breed, too. coastal lagoons and saltmarshes, or inland salt, saline or On June 2nd 2002 one breeding bird was seen alkaline lakes (Girard 1997). Numbers could fluctuate sitting on a nest on the muddy island. During that and/or increase in the presence of suitable temporary month, up to five adult Avocets were feeding in the artificial habitats such as saltpans, polders, and pond, but only one incubating pair was clearly visible floodplains (Snow & Perrins 1998). This species from the edge of the elevated dike. After the breeds in colonies that can vary from two or three up incubation period, on June 30th we saw a family with to several hundred pairs (Girard 1997). four small fledglings. Later during July, Avocets moved Despite the facts that Avocets breed regularly in to the distant end of the pond, where we were able to Central Europe, particularly in Hungary and observe the adults, but not the fledglings until August Vojvodina (Serbia, Yugoslavia), and that they regularly 10th. By that time, only one fledgling remained alive. migrate to the Mediterranean to spend the winter He was subsequently observed throughout August, along its shores, they have been rare visitors in the feeding with adults and moulting his brown feathers Kopa~ki rit wetland area. Over the period of a hundred into the typical black-white pattern. On August 31st years, from 1853-1964, the species has never been there were still five birds in the pond, and on recorded in this area (Mojsisovics 1883, 1886 & 1889, September 8th four birds remained. Neher 1902-1910, Horvath 1955). Moreover, it was Up to now, in the recent ornithological literature not even suggested that this halophilic species could (Kralj 1997, Luka~ 1998), Avocets have not been occur in the Kopa~ki rit. considered as a breeding species, nor have we found The first confirmed record of Avocets in Kopa~ki rit any published data on its breeding in Croatia. Thus, dates back to January 4th 1965, when Mr. J. Maji} our observations are the first breeding record of collected one bird and deposited it in the collection of Avocets, for both Croatia and Kopa~ki rit. the Zoological Museum in the Kopa~evo village. Later It is also an interesting observation because Avocets that year, on October 5th, Mrs. and Mr. Rucner favour smaller, more or less saline pools, lagoons, observed one bird (Rucner & Rucner 1972). The muddy arms of deltas, estuaries, and sheltered tidal third record of this species comes from 1999 when two mudflats, where ample loose sediment is rich in food birds were seen at the Podunavlje fishponds on 2nd organisms (Cramp & Simmons 1983). While they are October (own data). not strictly dependent on saline habitats, as long as On March 16th 2002 Mr. Roberto Tinarelli observed grazing or flooding maintains sparse or low vegetation one bird in the area during his bird-watching trip (Osieck 1994), breeding of this species in the typical (R. Tinarelli pers. comm.). On April 6th 2002, during freshwater fishponds is not an everyday event. 139 Acrocephalus 113 - 114.qxd 28.3.2003 8:52 Pagel4rfK^ A. Mikuska et al.: The first breeding records of Avocets Recurvirostra avosetta for Croatia and Kopa~ki rit Summary Until recently, Avocets Recurvirostra avosetta were recorded in Croatia only as summer visitors and spring or fall migrants. We report the first record of successful nesting for this species for Croatia and for Kopa~ki rit. During 2002 one pair nested and raised one fledgling on the abandoned pond at Podunavlje fishponds. Povzetek Sabljarka Recurvirostra avosetta je imela do sedaj na Hrva{kem status poletnega gosta oziroma spomladanske in jesenske selivke. Avtorji poro~ajo o prvem in tudi uspe{nem gnezdenju sabljarke na Hrva{kem, v Kopa~kem ritu. V letu 2002 je par gnezdil in uspe{no vzredil enega mladi~a v enem od ribnikov Podunavlje, ki je zapu{~en. References Snow, D.W. & CM. Perrins (1998): The Birds of Western Palearctic. Concise Edition Vol. 1. Oxford University Press, Oxford. Arrived / Prispelo: 27.11.2002 Accepted / Sprejeto: 6.3.2003 Cramp, S. & K.E.L. Simmons, eds. (1983): The Birds of Western Palearctic. Vol. 3, Oxford University Press, Oxford. Geister, I. (2001): Prva gnezditev sabljarke Recurvirostra avosetta v Sloveniji. Annales, Ser. hist. nat. 25: 267-270. Girard, O. (1997): Avocet Recurvirostra avosetta. In: Hagemeijer, E.J.M. & MJ. Blair (eds.): The EBCC Atlas of European Breeding Birds: Their Distribution and Abundance. T & AD Poyser, London: 250-251. Horvath, L. (1955): Ornithologiai megfigyélesek a bellyei rétben. Aquila 59-62: 205-215. Kralj, J. (1997): Croatian ornithofauna in the last 200 years. Larus 46: 1-112. Luka~, G. (1998): List of Croatian birds. Spatial and temporal distribution. Nat. Croat. 7 (suppl. 3): 1-160. Mojsisovics, A. (1883): Zur Fauna von Bellye und Darda. Mitteilungen des Naturwissenschaftlichen Vereines für Steinmark 19: 103-194. Mojsisovics, A. (1886): Biologische und faunistische Beobachtungen über Vögel und Saugetiere Südungarn und Slavonien in den Jahren 1884. und 1885. Mitteilungen des Naturwissenschaftlichen Vereines für Steinmark 22: 109-204. Mojsisovics, A. (1889): Zoogeographische Notizen über Südungarn aus dem Jahren 1886-1888. Mitteilungen des Naturwissenschaftlichen Vereines für Steinmark 24: 233-269. Neher, B. (1902-1910): Aus dem südlichen Ungarn. Mittheil. D. Österreich. Reichbundes f. Vogelkunde in Wien, Wien. Osieck, E. (1994) In: Tucker, G.M. & M.F. Heath (eds.): Birds in Europe: their conservation status. BirdLife International Conservation Series no. 3: 242-243. Rucner, D. & R Rucner (1972): Prilog poznavanju napu~enosti ptica u biotopima Baranje. Larus 24: 129- 203. 140