Important message
07-01-2021
Earlier we wrote several times about the site preferred by birds on islands in the Nemunas river at Lipliūnai, near Druskininkai. There abundant colonies of Common and Little terns were attracted, other species bred including Black-headed gulls, lapwings, Little Ringed plovers, Common Redshanks. In the course of the Project on the biggest island maintenance work took place to avoid shrubs and high grass. Due to draughts the water level dropped and the riverbed separating the island and the riverside was cleaned avoiding predators coming to the birds‘ site through dry land passages. The team of the Project under implementation by the Lithuanian Ornithological Society have collected sufficient data to substantiate the importance of this habitat for different species of birds and submitted a proposal to the Ministry of Environment to designate the site a special protection area (SPA). Some time ago we learned that Simonas Gentvilas, a new Minister of Environment, issued the decree, of 29 December, 2020, amending the SPA list with the islands of the Nemunas river at Lipliūnai as a site of special protection area to preserve the Little Tern (Sternula albifrons).
Little tern. Photo by Eugenijus Drobelis
