Transcarpathia has enormous potential for fostering the growth of birdwatching. This is due to the presence of numerous unique bird species in the Carpathians that are found nowhere else in Ukraine. For instance, there are:
- Common firecrest – is the smallest bird in Ukraine, weighing less than 7 grams;
- Spotted nutcracker – is a relative of the ravens, with a long beak and loud voice;
- White-throated dipper is a small sparrow-like bird that dives into mountain rivers and streams in search of insects;
- Eurasian three-toed woodpecker.
Leonid Pokrytyuk, a well-known ornithologist and expert of the Interreligious and Civil Environmental Forum of Eastern Europe (IRCEF), and an active volunteer of the “Everyone” Can Help volunteer center, takes everyone on a tour of the Transcarpathia’s bird world.
Bird watchers travel to the Chornohora range to witness the uncommon alpine accentor, water pipit, and magnificent golden eagle, as well as unusual species like western capercaillie, black grouse, and hazel grouse. Ural owls, Eurasian pygmy owls, boreal owls, common nightingales, scops owls, tiny owls, and even barn and horned owls can be found in the Carpathian forests. Great egrets, black-crowned night herons, mallards, and ferruginous ducks, as well as breeding purple herons and Eurasian spoonbills, can be seen on Lake Salve.
Bird watchers should pay special attention to the Transcarpathian region which the Carpathians naturally separate the region, thus the climate, flora, and fauna are warmer and more southerly. Most animal and bird species can be found near a body of water that borders a forest, field, or meadow. A big expanse of water surface always draws a great number of birds. There aren’t many major reservoirs on the map of the Transcarpathian region.
In the Mukachevo district, the largest is the artificial reservoirs near the villages of Pistrialovo, Zaluzhzhia, and Fornosh, all of which are part of the Black Mochar reclamation system, which covers an area of approximately 800 hectares.
For the birdwatching trip, they chose a water body near the village of Pistryalovo. This is one of the best places near the city of Berehovo, as it has a convenient location and is home to the largest cluster of gray herons. The nesting season for these birds has already ended, so it was possible to observe only some of them flying over the forest. Due to the hot weather, most birds rested near the riverside. Among the interesting species of birds, they managed to spot a couple of western marsh harriers, Eurasian hobby, common and black terns.
The event was held with the participation of children of IDPs in the framework of cooperation between the Interreligious and environmental civil forum of Eastern Europe (IRCEF) (headed by Alexander Bokotey) and the German Nature Conservation Union (NABU Bundesverband, NABU International), project coordinators Ivan Tymofeiev (NABU), Nataliya Kulya (IRCEF).
Informational Service of IRCEF
