Newsroom
A total of 404 Eleonora’s falcons were recorded along the coast between Akrotiri and Cape Aspro during this year’s annual bird survey, according to results released by the Akrotiri Environmental Educational Centre and the Republic of Cyprus Game and Fauna Service.
The survey was conducted on September 25 and October 6 in collaboration with BirdLife Cyprus, covering coastal cliffs and shoreline areas used by the birds.
The Akrotiri cliffs accounted for 34% of the falcons recorded, while Episkopi represented a further 28%. The remaining sightings were distributed across other sections of the surveyed coastline.
Observers also counted more than 50 European shags and spotted several yellow-legged gulls along the cliffs and shore.
The results contribute to the long-term monitoring of Eleonora’s falcon, a bird of prey that breeds in Cyprus. The island hosts a significant breeding population and lies at the easternmost edge of the species’ breeding range.
Thomas Hadjikyriakou, manager of the Akrotiri Environmental Educational Centre, said regular surveys were essential to tracking the species and protecting its population.
He thanked the organizations involved, stressing Cyprus’ responsibility to safeguard the falcon because of the island’s importance to its breeding range.
Nicolaos Kassinis, a senior officer at the Game and Fauna Service, said the species had been monitored through annual boat surveys for more than two decades.
Long-term population records allow conservation specialists to follow changes in numbers over time and assess the effectiveness of measures designed to protect the birds.
The latest count continues that work, providing another record of Eleonora’s falcons along one of Cyprus’ important coastal habitats.
