State of wetland bird protection in the lake Baikal basin

The article assesses the state of protection of wetland birds in the Baikal basin. We have considered the key laws and regulations of the Russian Federation and Mongolia, multilateral and bilateral international agreements in the field of bird protection, the role of protected areas (national parks, reserves, sanctuaries, key ornithological territories) of the Russian Federation and Mongolia in protection of wetland birds. The article analyzes the state of populations of species listed in the Red Books, as well as the status of wetland birds of the Lake Baikal basin. Baikal is included in the CITES list. We have revealed some features of hunting for water birds in the region. In Mongolia bird hunting is not very attractive. It has been noted that during the hunting season on the territory of the Russian part of the basin, geese listed in the Red Books become random prey. In general, despite some measures taken, the effectiveness of wetland bird protection in the Lake Baikal basin is not yet high, in particular, it concerns the compliance with laws, and coordination of the activities of different countries and subjects of Russia.