• Summary
• Text account
• Data table and detailed info
• Map
• Reference and further resources

The site was identified as important in 2007 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
White-headed Duck Oxyura leucocephala	EN	passage	1980-2003	20-200 individuals	A1, A4i
Smew Mergellus albellus	LC	winter	1980-2003	600-12,000 individuals	A4i
Ruddy Shelduck Tadorna ferruginea	LC	winter	1980-2003	1,000-20,000 individuals	A4i
Red-crested Pochard Netta rufina	LC	passage	1980-2003	500-15,000 individuals	A4i
Ferruginous Duck Aythya nyroca	NT	breeding	2004	10-50 individuals	A1
Mallard Anas platyrhynchos	LC	passage	1980-2003	1,500-50,000 individuals	A4i
Northern Pintail Anas acuta	LC	passage	1980-2003	500-35,000 individuals	A4i
Eurasian Coot Fulica atra	LC	passage	1980-2003	3,000-40,000 individuals	A4i
Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus	NT	breeding	1980-2003	80-300 individuals	A1, A4i
Great White Pelican Pelecanus onocrotalus	LC	non-breeding	1980-2003	10-300 individuals	A4i
Great Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo	LC	breeding	1980-2003	300-5,000 breeding pairs	A4i
Black-headed Gull Larus ridibundus	LC	breeding	1980-2003	200-8,000 breeding pairs	A4i
Common Gull-billed Tern Gelochelidon nilotica	LC	breeding	1980-2003	100-2,500 breeding pairs	A4i
A4iii Species group - waterbirds	n/a	passage	1980	20,000 individuals	A4iii

1. The current IUCN Red List category. The category at the time of the IBA criteria assessment (2007) may differ.

Ideally the conservation status of the IBA will have been checked regularly since the site was first identified in 2007. The most recent assessment (2018) is shown below.

State (condition of the trigger species' populations)
Species	Reference	Actual	Units	% remaining	Result
Yellow-breasted Bunting Emberiza aureola	1	26	individuals	100	favourable

State (condition of the trigger species' habitats)
Habitat	Quantity (% remaining)	Quality (% carrying capacity)	Result
Artificial/Aquatic & Marine	good (> 90%)	good (> 90%)	favourable
Wetlands (inland)	good (> 90%)	good (> 90%)	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 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

Habitat1	Habitat detail	% of IBA
Artificial/Aquatic & Marine	Artificial water bodies	65
Forest	Flood-plain, Wooded steppe	15
Desert	Desert & semi-desert - sandy, Desert & semi-desert - clay	10
Grassland	Dry grassland on sandy soils	major (>10)
Wetlands (inland)	Water-fringe vegetation	major (>10)
Shrubland	Low bushes, Scrub	minor (<10)

1. IUCN Habitat classification.

Land use	% of IBA
other	100
agriculture	50
fisheries/aquaculture	50
water management	50

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Sorbulak Lake System (Kazakhstan). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/sorbulak-lake-system-iba-kazakhstan on 22/11/2024.