Pink pelicans, which had been absent for over a century, have returned to Velykyi Luz
Soldiers from the 128th Separate Mechanized Brigade “Dyke Pole” filmed colonies of rare pink pelicans in the Velykyi Luh area. These birds are listed in Ukraine’s Red Book, and their presence in this region is of particular significance to scientists.
The area in question consists of floodplains that formed after the destruction of the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant and the shallowing of the Kakhovka Reservoir.
Ecologist Vadym Manyuk noted that the pink pelicans appear to have adapted to the conditions of war. Judging by the video, the constant explosions do not disturb the birds as long as they do not pose a direct threat to them.
“Since these explosions do not directly hit the birds, they remain calm. Because if it were hunting weapons… Nature reacts very flexibly to human-induced situations,” the ecologist explained.
According to Manyuk, the main areas where pink pelicans are found in Ukraine are the Danube floodplains and the Azov region. At the same time, these birds lived in the Velykyi Luz about 150 years ago.
“Back then, even the Zaporozhian Cossacks who lived near the Velykyi Luz knew about them and took note that these were their birds… But the pelicans disappeared as early as the 19th century due to human impact; hunting here is intense. And since then, no pelicans have been recorded here,” the scientist said.
Pink pelicans require a significant amount of food. A single bird can eat up to two kilograms of fish per day.
Pelicans often hunt in groups: they form a semicircle and drive schools of fish onto the shallows.
Therefore, the appearance and expansion of the colony at Velykyi Luz may indicate that there is a sufficient food supply in this area.
“There are many wild sandy beaches and sandbars here, and it’s convenient for them to settle there—they love this kind of open coastal space. From there, they hunt on the water,” noted Vadym Manyuk.
The ecologist also predicts the continued restoration of Velykyi Luz’s natural ecosystems. As the willow forest expands, the number of insects, birds, and wild animals here may increase.
Jackals, foxes, and hares have already been spotted in the floodplains.
At the same time, it is currently impossible to predict exactly how the range of the pink pelicans will expand.
Previously, these pink birds were also spotted in the estuaries of the Odesa region, where their natural range is also expanding.
This is reported in a segment by “Suspilne.”
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