Red Book birds were spotted in two metropolitan parks

The official website of the mayor of Moscow reported that rare birds listed in the Red Book of Moscow and Russia were found in Ostankino and Severnoye Butovo parks.

The grey heron was caught in the camera lens by specialists from the Department of Biodiversity Monitoring of the State Environmental Protection Center of the Moscow Department of Nature Management and Environmental Protection. A rare bird was spotted in the Severnoye Butovo Ecopark on the Bitse River. The nesting of the grey heron in Moscow has not been confirmed for the last 20-30 years. It usually winters in Western Europe or Africa.

Another rare bird was discovered on the Yauza River in the Ostankino Natural History Park. There, experts have recorded a reed warbler or a water hen. In the capital, in cold weather, it is almost impossible to meet it, since it prefers warmer places for wintering, such as Europe, the Black Sea region, the Caspian Sea, Central Asia, subtropics and tropics.

In addition, tangerines were noticed on Yauza. The natural habitat of these ducks in our country is in the Far East in the Amur River basin. There are only about 25 thousand pairs of tangerines in the world, of which 15 thousand pairs live on the territory of Russia.

"Moscow mandarins are introduced, that is, animals that were intentionally or accidentally relocated by humans outside their natural range to a new habitat. They have been repeatedly spotted in the capital's natural areas in winter and summer. Experts do not exclude the possibility that birds may start nesting in these places and finally settle there," the report says.

Scientists emphasize that mandarins, due to their peacefulness, should not interfere with the indigenous inhabitants of Moscow reservoirs: mallards, reed warblers, crested blackheads and other waterfowl.