Monitoring Program

The monitoring program involves the following activities:

Bird Fauna Monitoring

• Counting the birds’ colonies during the breeding period.
• Ringing the pelicans that nestle onto the wooden platforms, the first half of June
• Tracking territories and nests of predators
• Monthly counting of lake’s birds during the whole year
  

Monitoring the water quality

The parameters that measured are ph, temperature, dissolved oxygen, NH₄, nitrates, P, conductivity, etc.  The samples are taken from the lake and the river Strymonas, monthly during the year. The parameters that are examined are according to the Directive  60/2000 fir water (L. 3199/2003, OJ 280A/2003).

Two meteorological stations (in Lithitopos and Achladoxori) and a stathmometer (in river Strymonas) are used for the recording of the climatic data of the area.

Mammals Monitoring. The mammals that the Management Authority monitors are otter, jackal, rodents and bats.

Habitats Monitoring.  A recording of the status of National Park’s habitats in order to update the mapping of the existing data concerning the types of habitats in the area. It is worth to mention that during 2011 a new habitat type  has been identified and recorded for the National Park in the mountain Kerkini (Beles). This habitat is the forests Taxus baccata,  9850*.

Recording human activities in the National Park. In order to evaluate the effects of certain human activities to the fauna of National Park, the Management Authority is focused in two activities:

• Recording the dead animals in the main road network of the National Park (specie, quantity, position)     
• Recording the dead birds in the wind power park in Sidirokastro