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The site was identified as important in 2006 because it was regularly supporting significant populations of the species listed below, meeting ('triggering') IBA criteria.

Populations meeting IBA criteria ('trigger species') at the site:

Species	Red List1	Season	Year(s)	Size	IBA criteria
Mute Swan Cygnus olor	LC	passage	2005-2006	6,050 individuals	A4i
A4iii Species group - waterbirds	n/a	passage	2006	20,000-49,999 individuals	A4iii

1. The current IUCN Red List category. The category at the time of the IBA criteria assessment (2006) may differ.

Ideally the conservation status of the IBA will have been checked regularly since the site was first identified in 2006. The most recent assessment (2018) is shown below.

State (condition of the trigger species' populations)
Species	Reference	Actual	Units	% remaining	Result
Mute Swan Cygnus olor	4,000	2,500	individuals	63	unfavourable
Whooper Swan Cygnus cygnus	130	83	individuals	64	unfavourable
Long-tailed Duck Clangula hyemalis	1	1	individuals	100	favourable
Common Goldeneye Bucephala clangula	50	30	individuals	60	unfavourable
Smew Mergellus albellus	27	1	individuals	4	very unfavourable
Goosander Mergus merganser	3	15	individuals	100	favourable
Red-breasted Merganser Mergus serrator	205	5	individuals	3	very unfavourable
Red-crested Pochard Netta rufina	5,000	1,200	individuals	24	very unfavourable
Common Pochard Aythya ferina	2,000	700	individuals	35	very unfavourable
Tufted Duck Aythya fuligula	700	750	individuals	100	favourable
Northern Shoveler Spatula clypeata	20	26	individuals	100	favourable
Gadwall Mareca strepera	20	15	individuals	75	near favourable
Eurasian Wigeon Mareca penelope	1,500	800	individuals	54	unfavourable
Mallard Anas platyrhynchos	1,500	950	individuals	64	unfavourable
Anas crecca	4,000	5	individuals	1	very unfavourable
Little Grebe Tachybaptus ruficollis	5	6	individuals	100	favourable
Rock Dove Columba livia	100	50	individuals	50	unfavourable
Eurasian Collared-dove Streptopelia decaocto	1	2	individuals	100	favourable
Eurasian Coot Fulica atra	380	600	individuals	100	favourable
Grey Heron Ardea cinerea	8	40	individuals	100	favourable
Pygmy Cormorant Microcarbo pygmaeus	2	17	individuals	100	favourable
Great Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo	4	10	individuals	100	favourable
Common Ringed Plover Charadrius hiaticula	3	7	individuals	100	favourable
Dunlin Calidris alpina	65	17	individuals	27	very unfavourable
Jack Snipe Lymnocryptes minimus	1	20	individuals	100	favourable
Common Redshank Tringa totanus	17	4	individuals	24	very unfavourable
Black-headed Gull Larus ridibundus	10	20	individuals	100	favourable
Mew Gull Larus canus	50	155	individuals	100	favourable
Caspian Gull Larus cachinnans	180	35	individuals	20	very unfavourable
Short-eared Owl Asio flammeus	1	1	individuals	100	favourable
Hen Harrier Circus cyaneus	2	4	individuals	100	favourable
Eurasian Sparrowhawk Accipiter nisus	2	1	individuals	50	unfavourable
White-tailed Sea-eagle Haliaeetus albicilla	20	12	individuals	60	unfavourable
Rough-legged Buzzard Buteo lagopus	1	1	individuals	100	favourable
Common Kingfisher Alcedo atthis	2	1	individuals	50	unfavourable
Common Kestrel Falco tinnunculus	8	4	individuals	50	unfavourable
Merlin Falco columbarius	1	3	individuals	100	favourable
Daurian Jackdaw Corvus dauuricus	1	5	individuals	100	favourable
Carrion Crow Corvus corone	1	10	individuals	100	favourable
Alaudala rufescens	100	1,150	individuals	100	favourable
Horned Lark Eremophila alpestris	140	3	individuals	3	very unfavourable
White-winged Lark Alauda leucoptera	100	5	individuals	5	very unfavourable
Eurasian Skylark Alauda arvensis	3	15	individuals	100	favourable
Crested Lark Galerida cristata	1	5	individuals	100	favourable
Wood Warbler Phylloscopus sibilatrix	1	1	individuals	100	favourable
Black-throated Thrush Turdus atrogularis	1	2	individuals	100	favourable
White-winged Snowfinch Montifringilla nivalis	1	30	individuals	100	favourable
Common Linnet Linaria cannabina	1	80	individuals	100	favourable
Yellow-breasted Bunting Emberiza aureola	1	50	individuals	100	favourable

Response (conservation actions taken for the trigger species and/or their habitats)
Protected areas	Management plan	Other action	Result
Whole area of site (>90%) covered by appropriate conservation designation	A management plan exists but it is out of date or not comprehensive	Substantive conservation measures are being implemented but these are not comprehensive and are limited by resources and capacity	medium

Year	Protected Area	Designation	% overlap with IBA
-	Mangyshlakskiy	Experimental Botanical Garden	76
1986	Karagye-Karakolskiy	Zakaznik	100

Habitat1	Habitat detail	% of IBA
Artificial/Aquatic & Marine	Artificial water bodies	82
Desert	Desert & semi-desert - clay, Desert & semi-desert - salty, Desert & semi-desert - sandy	13
Artificial/Terrestrial	Other urban & industrial areas	minor (<10)
Shrubland	Low bushes	minor (<10)
Wetlands (inland)	Standing brackish & salt water, Water-fringe vegetation	minor (<10)

1. IUCN Habitat classification.

Land use	% of IBA
nature conservation and research	100
other	95

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Karakol Lake (Kazakhstan). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/karakol-lake-iba-kazakhstan on 24/11/2024.