Bewick’s swan: Red Data Book of Armenia

Ducks, geese and swans — Anatidae

Status. A rare species occurring randomly during migrations and wintering. Listed in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (ver. 3.1) as Least Concern. According to IUCN criteria categorized as Vulnerable VU B1ab(iii)+2ab(iii).

Distribution. Eurasian tundra from the Scandinavian Peninsula to the Kolyma delta, as well as the western islands of the Arctic Ocean.

Distribution in Armenia. Occurs during migrations and wintering in the Lake Sevan basin, seldom on the fish ponds of the Arax riverside in the Ararat Province.

Habitats. Riparian vegetation around the lakelets and lakes, lake shallows, river mouths.

Biological traits. Recorded in Armenia only during migrations and wintering, sometimes along with the whooper swan in September–March.

Population size and its trends. Always recorded in flocks of 2–20, sometimes up to 60, in exceptional cases up to 230 individuals.

Major threats. Small population size, poaching, constant disturbance by fishermen in the wintering sites on the Lake Sevan.

Conservation measures. Protected in Sevan National Park. The species demands for urgent protection. It is essential to fence off, and prohibit access of fishermen to, the shallow bays of the Lake Sevan and the mouths of the Gavaraget and Masrik rivers. It is expedient to apply supplementary winter feeding to swans in these areas.