Observations of Waterbirds on the Upper Euphrates During Autumn Migration

On 12-15 September 2004 we conducted a count of birds on a 68 km section of the Upper Euphrates, from the Atatürk dam to the town of Halfeti. Altogether 291 individuals from 30 waterbird species were noted, their density was 42.8 indiv. / 10 km. Differentiation in numbers among particular trophic and morpho-ecological groups was significant. Within the trophic groups the phytophagous and ichthyophagous species were the most abundant. The most numerous within the morpho-ecological groups were the swimmers and flight feeders. Despite the lack of appropriate foraging places for some waterbird species, this part of the Euphrates plays an important role for autumn migration in this region. In comparison with other large Western Palearctic rivers, the Upper Euphrates showed low densities of birds and low species similarity.