A breeding colony of the Near Threatened Lesser Flamingo Phoeniconaias minor in western Africa: a conservation story of threats and land management
2013
MORENO-OPO, R. | OULD SIDATY, Z. E. | BALDÒ, J. M. | GARCÌA, F. | OULD SEHLA DAF, D. | GONZÀLEZ, L. M.
The 2011 breeding results of the Lesser Flamingo Phoeniconaias minor at its only West African colony, in Aftout es Saheli, south-west Mauritania, are presented. Several breeding attempts have been documented since the second half of the 19ᵗʰ century although no successful breeding, in terms of fledged juveniles, was recorded until 2010. Adverse hydrological dynamics, easy access to the colony by predators, and disturbance and direct mortality caused by poachers led to the failure of all previous breeding attempts. In 2011 the breeding colony was monitored and a number of major threats were identified and averted. Management interventions consisted of deterring and trapping predators (jackals Canis adustus and C. aureus and warthog Phacochoerus africanus) around the colony and preventing the killing of flamingos by poachers. As a result, 4,800 Lesser Flamingos and 10,200 Greater Flamingos Phoenicopterus roseus incubating individuals, as well as about 14,000 chicks of both species, were recorded. It was not possible to prevent the death by predation or other natural causes of 4,672 juveniles of both species after the wetland dried up, so the final estimated number of fledged juveniles was 10,000. The field work allowed us to collect information on hydrological dynamics and to propose conservation measures matching Lesser Flamingo ecological requirements. Similarly, we identified the most sustainable measures for deterring predators, with the aim of including them in the management of the wetland.
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