Scientific publications

We present the results of monitoring Great Snipe lekking in an agricultural landscape of Karelia during 2021–2025. The response of birds to the landscape alteration during agricultural reclamation of abandoned fields overgrown with trees and shrubs is discussed. In 2021–2022, 8–15 males gathered at the lek site known since 1996. From the autumn of 2022 to the summer of 2023, intensive work was carried out in and around the lek site to remove trees and shrubs, dig new drainage ditches, and level and plow the fields. These activities coincided with the lekking period, so in the spring of 2023, no Great Snipes assembled at the lek site. The reclamation work significantly altered the landscape. New drainage ditches were excavated at 25–30 m intervals acrossтthe lek site, trees and shrubs disappeared, and the composition and density of the ground vegetation changed. Despite this, the birds returned to the lek site in subsequent years, and their numbers remained comparable to those observed in previous years. This return was facilitated by a relatively high level of philopatry among the birds: 24 % of the males ringed in 2021–2024 returned to the same lek site in subsequent years. Based on the bird numbers recorded over the past five years, this site can be classified as a stable key lek area, which requires protection and annual monitoring. In the long term, there is a risk of a decline in the bird numbers due to changes in the hydrological regime and reduced soil moisture at the site.