breeding season, so it could not be established whether the young birds 
we saw eventually fledged. 
The Eregli Marshes are rapidly drying up after some of its major 
tributaries were recently intercepted and diverted. The water level was 
about one m lower than it had been in 1991, and it is assumed that the 
brackish water areas as described by Kirwan (1992) are increasing in size 
and salinity; this might explain the increasing suitability of the area for 
breeding and feeding flamingoes. 
Other flamingo breeding sites 
Dijksen and Kasparek (1988) stated that irregular breeding could not be 
ruled out at Aci Golii, a highly saline lake in western Turkey. On 4 June 
1993, Yarar and Ozesmi (pers. comm.) located a group of flamingoes and 
strongly suspected breeding. During a follow-up visit on 23 June 1993, 
the authors were able to approach the suspected breeding site well 
enough to confirm breeding and to estimate the maximum number of 
pairs as 100. The colony was at the fringes of the extensive saltworks 
along the northern shore of the lake. Remarkably, in spite of recent 
rainfall, the colony was accessible overland, albeit through heavy mud. 
Other breeding species here included Avocet Recurvirostra avosetta, 
Kentish Plover Charadrius alexandrinus, Slender-billed Gull Lams genet (c. 
50 pairs), Common Tern Sterna hirndo and Little Tern Sterna albifrons. 
In Turkey the Greater Flamingo is now known to breed at five sites: Tuz 
Golii (ll,000nests and 4,500chicks in 1991, 14,000chicks in 1992 [Johnson 
et al in prep.]), Qamalti Saltpans (c. 600 pairs in 1993, smaller numbers in 
previous years [Siki, pers. comm.]), Seyfe Golii (previously suspected 
breeding [see Husband and Kasparek 1984], confirmed breeding of 2,000 
pairs in 1992 [Yarar and Ozesmi pers. comm.], and breeding again 
confirmed during 1993 by the first author), Aci Golii and Eregli Marshes. 
Breeding, or breeding attempts, elsewhere have been reported in the past 
(e.g. at Sultan Marshes [Kasparek 1985]) and, considering the fact that 
flamingoes seem to be relatively flexible and not very traditional in the 
selection of their breeding sites, it seems likely that new sites may be 
discovered in coming years. At present the total Turkish population is 
probably about 17,000 pairs. 
White Pelican Pelecanus onocrotalus 
An interesting addition to the discovery of the breeding flamingoes at 
Eregli Marshes was a small colony of White Pelican, on the second island 
described above. Twenty three nests, each with two eggs, were located 
amidst the flamingo nests. The nests were c. 40cm high, about twice as 
high as the surrounding flamingo nests, and were composed of Phragmites 
stems. Breeding of White Pelicans at Eregli Marshes has not been 
confirmed since 1971 when at least 420 pairs nested: prior to 1971 up to 
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