PROJECT DESCRIPTION
BACKGROUND
Oroklini Lake is a designated Natura 2000 wetland site (SPA and SCI) in the Larnaka district of Cyprus. It is one of only three natural wetland areas in Cyprus and an important bird migratory route and stopover place in spring and winter. It is important for its halophytic (salt marsh) vegetation and for a number of wading bird species listed in Annex I of the Birds Directive, including the black-winged stilt (Himantopus himantopus) and the spur-winged lapwing (Hoplopterus spinosus). The main threats to the site come from human disturbance due to traffic and the presence of people. The water level is dependent on precipitation, as well as groundwater from the catchment area to the north. However, over-extraction of water due to development has also resulted in earlier evaporation during the summer months and longer periods of drought, which is expected to become more severe with climate change. Runoff from urban areas causes flash flood risks, while fields of winter wheat surrounding the site constitute a potential source of nitrate and pesticide runoff.
OBJECTIVES
The OROKLINI project’s main objective was to bring the important bird species of the Oroklini Lake Natura 2000 network site to favourable conservation status. Besides the two target species, the black-winged stilt and the spur-winged lapwing, four other Annex I species regularly nest or have nested at the site: Eurasian stone-curlew (Burhinus oedicnemus), little tern (Sterna albifrons), common tern (Sterna hirundo) and Kentish plover (Charadrius alexandrinus). The site is also important for 58 Annex I species that visit, or over-winter, and another 36 regularly occurring non-Annex I species. The project also aimed to monitor the rare, halophytic vegetation, and perform measures to establish favourable habitat conservation status, including fencing, water management, the removal of invasive species, and the planting of natural vegetation.
RESULTS
The OROKLINI project established Favourable Reference Values (FRVs) for the two main targeted species, black-winged stilt and spur-winged lapwing, and two of the other four Annex I species that regularly nest or have nested at Cyprus’s Oroklini Lake: Eurasian stone-curlew and Kentish plover.
Project actions increased the habitats available for the Oroklini Lake's bird species, with habitat improvements made through the implementation of water management and restoration actions, including the creation of new islets, the restoration of land previously destroyed by an illegal market, and fencing around the lake to reduce disturbance. The project removed around 0.45 ha of invasive alien vegetation such as acacias, Atriplex semibaccata and Parkinsonia aculeate, as well as subsequently re-sprouting acacia, and planted native tree species, in particular, 1 410 Tamarix trees, 50 Pistascia lentiscus bushes, around 10-20 Zizifus lotus bushes, and some 30 pine trees. The project demonstrated, for the first time in Cyprus, the implementation of a range of best practice wetland management techniques. This serves as a model for other European wetland projects, including an ongoing one in Cyprus. The OROKLINI project also increased the knowledge base concerning the lake's physical and biological characteristics.
Alongside the conservation actions, the project team established FRV methodology with definitions of FRV for the targeted species. During the project's duration, but after the implementation of its actions, the project team observed that bird numbers started moving towards the FRV target for the spur-winged lapwing, while other Annex I species that do not regularly breed on site were recorded nesting during 2014 and 2015 (e.g. little terns, Kentish plover, Eurasian stone-curlew, cattle egret). Monitoring protocols were developed and implemented for bird species. These showed that important species were nesting on the restored areas, including the newly-created islets (e.g. spur-winged lapwing and Eurasian stone-curlew, black-winged stilt, little tern, spur-winged lapwing). Also, the lake held water for longer in summer 2014, even that year was the driest year in the last 100 years for Cyprus.
The project team built infrastructure for enhancing the Oroklini Lake Natura 2000 site's eco-tourism potential, which should bring socio-economic benefits to the local community, including a bird hide and information kiosk. The project conducted an extensive public awareness-raising campaign, and the local community was engaged through community consultation meetings and site visits, a volunteer clean-up Oroklini event, workshops for teachers and educational packs for schools. The erection of fencing minimised disturbance due to cars, humans and their pet dogs: only four trespassing events were recorded after the fencing was erected, while previously passage was commonplace. Little ringed plover (Charadrius dubius) nested on the dirt roads within the fenced area. An illegal market area was removed and the land restored for wildlife; northern lapwing (Vanellus vanellus) returned to nest in this area, and this species also utlised 4 of the 5 created islets in 2014, with the number of breeding pairs increasing significantly.
The project developed an Action Plan for the birds of the Oroklini Lake SPA, which set clear conservation, management and monitoring targets. It became legally operational through its incorporation into two Ministerial Decrees (one for the SCI and one for the SPA). The Water Development Department included the Oroklini Lake in the list of water bodies monitored under the Water Framework Directive, which will ensure the future monitoring of the water quality parameters suggested in the Action Plan for Oroklini Lake SPA. The project forms part of the national implementation of the Birds and Habitats Directives, with the most important policy contribution being the adoption of FRVs as a basis for setting conservation objectives. This was done for the first time in Cyprus, and instigated a larger project by the coordinating beneficiary within which they will set FRVs for all 30 SPAs in Cyprus and develop management plans for them.
Further information on the project can be found in the project's layman report and After-LIFE Conservation Plan (see "Read more" section).
