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The site was identified as internationally important for bird conservation 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 List	Season (year/s of estimate)	Size	IBA criteria
White-headed Duck Oxyura leucocephala	EN	passage (2006)	213 birds	A1
Common Goldeneye Bucephala clangula	LC	passage (2006)	1,500 birds	A4i
A4iii Species group - waterbirds	n/a	passage (2006)	15,000–100,000 birds	A4iii

Ideally the conservation status of the IBA will have been checked regularly since the site was first identified in 2006. The most recent assessment (2017) is shown below.

State (condition of the trigger species' populations)
Species	Actual vs Reference (units)	% remaining	Result
Whooper Swan Cygnus cygnus	1 / 1 (birds)	100	good
Ruddy Shelduck Tadorna ferruginea	80 / 80 (birds)	100	good
Tufted Duck Aythya fuligula	200 / 720 (birds)	28	very poor
Gadwall Mareca strepera	10 / 1 (birds)	100	good
Great Crested Grebe Podiceps cristatus	1 / 20 (birds)	5	very poor
Eurasian Coot Fulica atra	4 / 8,200 (birds)	1	very poor
Northern Lapwing Vanellus vanellus	1 / 1 (birds)	100	good
Black-headed Gull Larus ridibundus	1 / 1 (birds)	100	good
Mew Gull Larus canus	1 / 1 (birds)	100	good
Western Marsh-harrier Circus aeruginosus	1 / 1 (birds)	100	good
Pallid Harrier Circus macrourus	1 / 1 (birds)	100	good
Eurasian Skylark Alauda arvensis	20 / 1 (birds)	100	good
Tawny Pipit Anthus campestris	2 / 2 (birds)	100	good
Western Yellow Wagtail Motacilla flava	5 / 5 (birds)	100	good

State (condition of the trigger species' habitats)
Habitat	Quantity (% remaining)	Quality (% carrying capacity)	Result
Grassland	moderate (70–90%)	good (>90%)	moderate
Wetlands (inland)	good (>90%)	good (>90%)	good

Pressure (threats to the trigger species and/or their habitats)
Threat	Timing	Scope	Severity	Result
Biological resource use	happe­ning now	most of popul­ation/area (50–90%)	moderate decline (10–30% over 3 gener­ations)	high
Human intrusions and disturbance	happe­ning now	some of popul­ation/area (10–49%)	slow decline (1–10% over 3 gener­ations)	medium
Agricultural expansion and intensification	happe­ning now	some of popul­ation/area (10–49%)	no or slight decline (<1% over 3 gener­ations)	low
Pollution	happe­ning now	few indivi­duals/small area (<10%)	no or slight decline (<1% over 3 gener­ations)	low

Response (conservation actions taken for the trigger species and/or their habitats)
Designation	Planning	Action	Result
Whole area (>90%) covered by appropriate conservation designation	A compre­hensive and appropriate management plan exists that aims to maintain or improve the populations of qualifying bird species	Substantive conservation measures are being implemented, but these are not compre­hensive and are limited by resources and capacity	high

Habitat	% of IBA	Habitat detail
Grassland	50	Steppes & dry calcareous
Wetlands (inland)	50	Standing brackish & salt water; Water-fringe vegetation

Land use	% of IBA
hunting	80
rangeland/pastureland	30

Mixed state and private (farmers own a minor part).

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Saumalkol Lake (Kazakhstan). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/saumalkol-lake-iba-kazakhstan on 26/12/2024.