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Site description (2007 baseline)
The site is located in the central part of the Northern Kazakhstan region, very close to the major interregional motorway from Astana and Kokchetav, approximately midway between Astrakhanka and Rublyovka. The lake is 65 km to the south of the regional centre of Petropavlovsk, close to Aralagash village. The lake lies in the outer southern section of the large Smirnovsky State Nature Preserve, and is part of the expansive lake country of the southern West-Siberian Lowlands. The major landscape type is forest-steppe. About half a century ago, the region was subject to agricultural development with more than half of the virgin mesophylic steppe being ploughed and cultivated. As a result, nowadays the majority of the land around the lake is crop fields. The remaining fragments of steppe and a few low-lying meadow plots are used as pasture. Despite its small size, the lake is important as an intermediary resting site for large numbers of migrating waterfowl, a situation assisted by the closeness of the crops providing good feeding and by the relative protection provided by the Reserve status.

Key biodiversity
Owing to its ecological characteristics, geographical location and the surrounding agriculture, the moderately sized Terenkol lake has always been a reliable stop-over site for many hundreds of thousands of migrating waterbirds crossing the region. In addition to the occurrence of several globally threatened or rare species (Branta ruficollis, Melanitta fusca, Cygnus cygnus, Anser erythropus, Haliaeetus albicilla, Casmeroides albus and Grus grus), the site is extremely important for the very large number of common waterfowl it supports, many of which are intensively exploited by man as quarry species and the site provides an important refuge for maintaining huntable populations. The site is also important for diurnal birds of prey, the commonest being: Circus cyaneus, Circus aeruginosus, Milvus migrans and Buteo buteo. Aquila chrysaetos occurs in summer and, especially, autumn. A recent attempt (2007) at verification of the appropriateness of conferring the A4iii criterion to the site, especially for Anser albifrons, experienced a setback due to unseasonal meteorological conditions. A protracted spell of mild weather resulted in geese passing straight through the region, rather than pausing to roost and feed.

Non-bird biodiversity: The mammal fauna around the site appears to be poorly diversified, with murine rodents being the most numerous and including Apodemus agrarius and Microtus arvalis, with, in the wet habitats, Ondatra zibethica and Arvicola terrestris. Erinaceus europaeus, Vulpes vulpes, Lepus timidus, Lepus europaeus and Mustela eversmanni are also often encountered. Cervus elaphus sibiricus, Sus scrofo nigripes, Vulpes corsac and Martes martes also occur. The dominant emergent vegetation is Phragmites australis which occurs in some areas together with Typha angustifolia and Scirpus lacustris. Some muddy shoals are dominated by Carex sp. A few plots of steppe landscape, featuring an assortment of rich-herbage-motley-turf-grass associations consisting mostly of Stipa zalesskii, Festuca valesiaca, Phleum phleoides, Filipendula stepposa, Veronica spuria and Onobrychis sibirica still remain. The isolated stands of deciduous forest comprise, in the major part, of a few species of birch (including Betula verrucosa and B. pubescens) and aspen, with an understorey of Rosa sp.

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Terenkol Lake (Kazakhstan). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/terenkol-lake-iba-kazakhstan on 23/12/2024.