REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY OF PYGMY CORMORANT PHALACROCORAX PYGMEUS IN SIAHKESHIM PROTECTED AREA, NORTHERN IRAN

摘要

The breeding ecology of the Pygmy Cormorant Phalacrocorax pygmeus was studied in 2007 in the Siahkeshim Protected Area, Anzali Wetland Complex, northern Iran. Nests were monitored from the start of egg-laying until fledging, and parameters including laying date, clutch size, nest and egg size, and breeding output were recorded. Chick diet was studied using regurgitated fish. The mean clutch size was 4.1 +/- 1.3, median brood size was four and the median number of fledglings was three; 87% of the eggs hatched and 88% of the chicks survived to three weeks. The overall breeding success was 77% or 3.2 +/- 0.7 fledglings per nest. The main fish species fed to the chicks was the benthic-living Carassius carassius. Measures for conservation of this near-Threatened species are discussed.