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Steppe lakes
Home / Steppe lakes
What do we know about the Steppe Lake
Lakes and other reservoirs that you can visit with our help will be of interest primarily to bird lovers
One of the nearest is the Ters-Ashibulak reservoir. It is located very close to the highway, and has both gently sloping muddy sections of the coast, and higher and rocky ones. The most remarkable thing is that it is very possible to meet it here – in spring a large number of beautiful cranes Anthropoides virgo (sometimes up to 1500 birds), and in autumn a huge number of ducks (Tadorna ferruginea, Anas platyrhynchos, Anas crecca, Anas acuta) and on the plain next to it, sometimes there are Tetrax tetrax strepets. There is a large colony of pink starlings on the section of the dam made of stone blocks Sturnus roseus, and on the river flowing out of the reservoir you can observe various terns Sterna (hirundo, albifrons) and Larus gulls (argentatus, ridibundus, genei), in autumn you can see various waders (Himantopus, Actitis, Vannelus, Calidris). Common are grey herons (Ardea cinerea), Turkestan reed warbler (Acrocephalus stentoreus), black-headed remez (Remiz p.coronatus). And on the banks nest the blue-throated lark (Coracius garrulous), the golden pike (Merops apiaster), the common turtledove (Streptopelia turtur).
In the spring, when there are floods of the Arys and Syr Darya rivers, various ducks, herons, sandpipers and gulls, even both types of pelicans, are found in the mass on them. We had excursions when we counted more than 100 species per excursion day. A trip to Chushkakol can be made in one day, and if you have a desire to stay here longer, you can spend the night either in tents or in a hotel in Turkestan.
Two other small lakes located not far from each other and about 20 km from the highway – Taskol and Darbaza — can also please you with a meeting with many wetland birds: various ducks (Netta rufina A. strepera), terns (Sterna hirundo albifrons, Chlidonias niger, Gelochelidon nilotica), gulls and sandpipers (including stilt–walker Himantopus himantopus, stonecrop Xenus cinereus, meadow thrush Glareola pratincola, sometimes medium curlew Numenius phaeopus, many plovers – Charadrius alexandrinus and dubius), herons (including Egretta alba, Ixobrychus minutus, Bataurus stellaris). In the steppe around the lakes, you can meet the Tetrax tetrax, black-bellied grouse Pterocles orietalis, golden and green pike Merops apiaster and M. supercilliosus), larks (Galerida cristata, Melanocorypha calandra, A. gulgula) and field skate Anthus campestris. Ten km from these lakes there is another, already quite large lake — Bilikul. Its shores, unlike previous reservoirs, are overgrown with reeds, and in the spring there are shallow floods around it. The fauna of all these reservoirs complement each other and allows you to see a large number of bird species. Trips to these reservoirs can also be combined with visits to interesting gorges in the Karatau mountains, where observations of mountain views will add to your impressions.
Lake Kyzylkol is a saltwater lake, and it takes much longer to get to it, about 250 km. However, the road is quite good, and the impression you will get from bird watching on it will definitely be good. In different seasons, you can observe a wide variety of waterfowl here (the most interesting of them are the sawfish Oxyura leucephala, the round—nosed finfish Phalaropus lobatus, the silver—billed Recurvirostra ovosetta, the large curlew Numenius arquata, the black-headed giggler Larus ichthyaetus, the small gull Larus minutus) and on a low-lying part of the coast you can even meet a strep, Tetrax tetrax and jack Chlamydotis undulata, black-bellied grouse Pterocles orientales. In autumn, coot, ogar, piebald, various ducks rest here in the mass Anas and many near-water small birds (sandpipers, wagtails, skates, etc.). You can go to Kyzylkol in one day, or you can spend the night there in a tent.
A very interesting route is to the Chardara reservoir, where during the flight the bird accumulates in large numbers.
Lake Chushkakol is very interesting for its fauna. The vegetation around it has the character of a shrubby salt marsh desert. When traveling to this lake on the water, you will meet typical representatives of Asian avifauna (great white heron Egretta alba red heron Ardea purpurea spoonbill Platalea leucofea, loaf Bubulcus ibis, Circus aeruginosu, Himantopus himantopus, Recurvirostra ovosetta, Vanellachettusia leucura, Charadrius alexandrinus, Lusciniola melanopogon Acrocephalus stentoreus and on the surrounding plains — Merops supercilliosus. Calandrella cinerea Galerida cristata, Melanocoripha calandra, Motacilla feldegg, Lanius isabellinus Hippolais rama, Oenanthe isabellina, Cercotrichas galactotes, Emberiza bruniceps.
In addition, there are a lot of small ponds not so far away, but sometimes very interesting for their inhabitants. You can visit them in passing, stopping for a short time. For example, near the pond near the village of Ak-Biik, you can stop whenever you go to the Tashkent – Almaty highway. In spring, you can meet flying wetland and land birds here. In summer, the reed warbler Galinulla chloropus, small grebe Podiceps ruficollis, kingfisher Alcedo attis, carrier Actitis hypoleucos, mountain wagtail Motacilla cinerea nest here.