Current view: Text account
Site description (2004 baseline):
Site location and context
Two neighboring lakes within hilly steppe plain with some separate depressions with lakes and salt-marshes. Kultansor Lake has an area of 1,600 hectares, length - 5.7 km, width - 3 km, depth about 1.0 m. There are many peninsulas, lagoons and 8 islands. The only source of water is snow melt. Water is brackish or salty. In very dry years the lake is almost or completely dry. Tailor Lake has area of 400 hectares, length - 3.2 km, width - 1.5 km, average depth - 1.5 m, and has large reedbeds.
Up to 20,000 waterfowl concentrate here during spring and autumn passage. 80 species of waterbirds were observed here in the breeding and migration seasons. Besides waterbirds, breeding species include: Coturnix coturnix, Falco naumanni, Circus macrourus, C.pygargus, C. aeruginosus, Aquila nipalensis, Asio flammeus, Caprimulgus europaeus, and about 25 species of passerines. In some years, several tens of Flamingo feed at Kultansor. There are colonies of Larus ichtyaetus, L. cachinnans, L. ridibundus, terns, and ducks (Anas platyrhynchos, A. acuta, Aythya ferina etc.).
Non-bird biodiversity: Around the lake, there is typical steppe landscape with grass and some bushes. Mammals include Canis lupus, Vulpes vulpes, Vulpes corsac, Meles meles, several species of rodent (jerboas, voles etc.), marmot. Reptiles include Lacerta agilis, Vipera ursini, and fishes - Carassius brama.
Grazing; near the north bank of Tatisor there is arable up to the shore-line; fisheries.
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
Bird disturbance by fishermen; in some years there is egg collection of colonial species by locals.
The lakes are managed by the "Argos" company. Hunting at the lakes and in a 1 km border zone is prohibited. The IBA was recommended as a "zakaznik" of regional importance in documents submitted to the parliament commission on protected areas.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Kultansor and Tatysor Lakes (Kazakhstan). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/kultansor-and-tatysor-lakes-iba-kazakhstan on 23/12/2024.
