Migrant Bird Species of the Ruzizi Delta, Northern End of Lake Tanganyika, in Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo

ABSTRACT

Migrant bird species from the Ruzizi Delta in Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) were investigated from April 2019 until August 2021 in five sites of the Rusizi Burundian Delta (RBD) and five sites of the Ruzizi Congolese Delta (RCD). Each site was visited three times a year during the years 2019, 2020 and 2021. The investigations were conducted by direct observation on transect counts, point counts and on road bird counts using binoculars and telescopes. Travels were facilitated by the motorized fiberglass boat and the double cabin field vehicle of the Centre for Research in Hydrobiology (CRH) in Uvira, DRC. At the end of our investigations, we compiled a list of 131 migrant bird species, of which 87 (34%) were recorded in the unprotected Ruzizi Congolese Delta (RCD), 107 (42%) in the Rusizi Burundian Delta (RBD) protected at 85%, and 62 species (24%) recorded in both the RCD and the RBD. The migration positions encountered were migratory birds (M), 52 species (24%); Afrotropical migrants (A), 10 species (6%); Palaearctic migrants (P), 83 species (51%); migrants with some marine populations (p), four species (3%); nesting migrants (N), 3 species (2%); and wintering migrants (Wi), 10 species (6%). For migrant bird species to survive in a sustainable way in the Ruzizi Delta there must be abundant, permanent and diversified vegetation through the creation of a protected area in the Ruzizi Congolese Delta.

Keywords: Migrant bird species; Afrotropical migrants; Palearctic Migrants; Wintering migrants; Migrants with at least some marine populations.

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