Current view: Text account
Site description (2011 baseline):
Site location and context
The proposed IBA includes Sarykamysh Lake, Ustyurt Plateau and the Eastern Cliffs (Chink) of Ustyurt. Sarykamysh Lake is a closed brackish lake located in the central part of the Sarykamysh depression about halfway between the Caspian and Aral Seas. It is a cross-border site and the Turkmen portion of the lake is already designated as an IBA (TM 022). The deep northern part of the lake (1000 km2) belongs to Uzbekistan and the remainder (about 3000 km2) to Turkmenistan. It is one of the largest water bodies in Central Asia (Nikitin, 1978). The lake formed in 1963 as a result of the release of drainage waters from the irrigated oases of Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan located along the left bank of the lower Amu Darya in the Sarykamysh depression into the the ancient Daryalyk riverbed. The area is 400000 ha, the volume is more than 60 km3, and the maximum depth is 45 m.The Eastern Cliffs of Ustyurt are located along the west and north-east shores of the lake. Riparian vegetation at the northern end of the lake is poorly developed because of the recent rise in water levels. There are small areas of reed and reedmace in the shallow parts of the north and north-west shores. The east shore is completely devoid of vegetation due to being very deep. A wide (1 km) strip of shore separates the lake from the Ustyurt plateau (clayey soil in the east and sand in the north and west). It is densely covered with thickets of tamarisk and saxaul.In 2002 - 2007 mineralization in the Uzbek northwestern part of the lake was 12.6 - 14 g/l. Currently mineralization is increasing because of a reduction of the inflow of the Daryalyk collector.In 1980 the Sarykamysh Lake Zakaznik was established in Turkmenistan administered by the Gaplangyr Reserve. The total area is 551066 ha, including 203561 ha of open water. In 2008 this part of the lake was designated as an Important Bird Area (IBA). In 2010, on the Karakalpak part of the lake, there were 7 fishery enterprises operating.The Ustyurt Plateau is an elevated plain folded with Neogene limestones, Paleogene clays and gypsum. Steep escarpments (cliffs) form the edges of the plateau in the southwest. The height of the plateau is 100-300 m asl.The desert landscape of Ustyurt consists of a clay-soil sagebrush desert and sagebrush-saltwort desert. The southeast part of Ustyurt is a clay-gravel desert. The main vegetation consists of Salsola arbuscula, Artemisia, Anabasis salsa, and saxaul. The climate is dry and sharply continental. Precipitation is just over 100 mm per year. The main part of Ustyurt is used as spring-summer-autumn pasture. The proposed IBA also includes the Sarzha depression located in the northeast of the IBA where there is the Sarzha well with brackish water. According to Matekova G., Caspian Plover and Houbara Bustard were recorded in the area of the depression during the breeding season in May 2007.
The avifauna of Ustyurt is poor due to the extreme aridity and homogeneity of the landscape. However, among the nesting birds there are Houbara Bustard (globally endangered species ) and Pterocles alchata (nationally endangered and declining in Central Asia). The East Cliffs of Ustyurt has special importance for breeding birds of prey such as Egyptian Vulture and Saker Falcon (both globally threatened). Also, it is the second known nesting place of Alpine Swift in the plains of Uzbekistan. Unfortunately, there is not much information on this region due to its remoteness. However, since 2007 three short surveys (spring 2007, summer and autumn 2010) have been undertaken. During these surveys 108 species of bird were recorded. Seventeen species are rare - 15 species are included in the Red Data Book of Uzbekistan (2006) and 8 species in the IUCN Red List (see table below). The populations of key species still requires further study and refinement but the importance of this area for bird conservation is unquestionable.Lake Sarykamysh, like any other wetland in an arid zone, plays an important role in the life of desert animals and is characterized by a diversity of fauna. Research confirms that the Ustyurt landscape supports a complex of linked elements. For instance, Greater Sand Plover and Caspian Plover nest in dry areas of the plateau and takyrs. After the breeding season they move en masse to the shores of Sarykamysh Lake where they gather in flocks before migration. Swifts breed on the cliffs and feed on insects over the lake. Similarly, owls search for food along the shore and on the plateau and use the cliffs of the sor as shelter and nesting sites. Gazelles spend much of thei r time in the safe open spaces of the plateau but regularly visit the lake to drink.
Non-bird biodiversity: The following mammals have been recorded - Hemiechinus auritus, Hemiechinus hypomelas, Canis lupus, Vulpes vulpes, Meles meles, Mustela eversmanni, Sus scrofa, Gazella subgutturosus, Lepus tolai and Rhombomys opimus. Among 15 fish species recorded in Lake Sarykamysh in the last two years were found two species included in the Red Data Book of Uzbekistan (2010): Pungitius platygaster aralensis (8 individuals were found in the stomach of a pikeperch) and Barbus capito conocephalus (Zholdasova et al, 2009).
The proposed territory is used only for fisheries, with seven fishery enterprises operating. Due to the remoteness of the site and limited resources, ranger activity to monitor what is going on is virtually absent.
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
The risk of contamination of the water body with pesticides coming with drainage water is low. Analysis of muscle, liver and gonad samples from commercial fish from the system of collectors in the southern part of Karakalpakstan conducted in 2009 by Zholdasova I.M. and others (Zholdasova, Nishonov B. Temirbekov R.O., 2010) showed trace contamination by organochlorine pesticides. Quantities did not exceed the maximum allowable limit (MAL) of hygienic standards adopted in the Republic of Uzbekistan..
One threat to waterfowl at Sarykamysh Lake is fishing nets that catch diving ducks and coots. Abandoned nets at the bottom of the lake and in the littoral zone constitute additional threats. However, the threat level is moderate because most of the birds during migration are distributed along the shoreline in shallow water areas where the nets are rarely located.
The main threat is the change in water level of Sarykamysh. Rising water levels in the last decade has resulted in the loss of waterfowl nesting habitat. Currently, however, there is another serious problem connected to the construction in Turkmenistan of the Altyn Asyr reservoir and, beginning in 2009, abstraction from the collector that feeds Lake Sarykamysh. In 2009 the lake area reduced by 7200 ha and salinity increased. Continued abstraction will cause problems of increasing salinity and impact negatively on the fisheries.
Conservation responses/actions for key biodiversity
Lake Sarykamysh has been surveyed rarely so there is not so much data available. In 2007 it was surveyed by Matekova G. who works at the Institute of Bio-ecology. In June 2010 UzSPB conducted a short reconnaissance survey as part of the FFI project "Conservation of landscape biodiversity of Ustyurt" and in late October - early November 2010 a survey was conducted as part of the SOS - CLP project "Survey of 3 potential IBAs in collaboration with students in Uzbekistan"
There is no nature protected areas on this territory.
7 fisheries enterprises hold Sarykamysh lake under lease.
To CLP-SOS project "Survey of 3 potential IBAs in collaboration with students in Uzbekistan"
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Sarykamysh lake and surrounding Ustyurt Plateau (Uzbekistan). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/sarykamysh-lake-and-surrounding-ustyurt-plateau-iba-uzbekistan on 22/11/2024.
