Kyrgyzstan Ramsar wetland
Song Kol Lake
119 bird species recorded; the most in August.
Vilya Shoni · CC BY-SA 4.0
This month here
0 species in January.0 species in February.0 species in March.0 species in April.0 species in May.68 species in June.91 species in July.101 species in August.36 species in September.4 species in October.0 species in November.0 species in December.
The birds you are most likely to see in the month you choose, those that come for the season first. It opens on today's month.
No records for this month.
No records for this month.
No records for this month.
No records for this month.
No records for this month.
VU
NT
NT
NT
VU
NT
No records for this month.
No records for this month.
- Resident all year
- Summer visitor comes to breed
- Winter visitor comes for the winter
- Passage migrant in spring and autumn
In numbers
119 species, counted.
Our own rating, from the records only: species (50 points), threatened species (20), migrants (20) and protected status — Ramsar, IBA, SPA, observatory (10).
- 119Speciesrecorded more than once
- 65Migrantssummer, winter or passage visitors
- 3ThreatenedVulnerable, Endangered or Critically Endangered (IUCN)
- 1,576Recordsopen records within 6 km
- 3,014 mAltitudeabove the sea
- 14Raptors
- 23Waders
- 6Gulls & seabirds
- 14Ducks & geese
- 6Herons, ibises & grebes
- 2Storks & cranes
- 47Songbirds
- 7Other birds
From open records (eBird and others, through GBIF, licensed for any use). More birdwatchers mean more records: a quiet place may have more birds than it shows.
The checklist
All 119 species.
By group, with the year in twelve cells: the darker the cell, the more often the bird is recorded that month.
Raptors14 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Black KiteMilvus migrans
- Long-legged BuzzardButeo rufinus
- European HobbyFalco subbuteo
- Common KestrelFalco tinnunculus
- Gyps himalayensisGyps himalayensis
- Bearded VultureGypaetus barbatusNT
- Eurasian Black VultureAegypius monachusNT
- Western Marsh HarrierCircus aeruginosus
- Golden EagleAquila chrysaetos
- Booted eagleHieraaetus pennatus
- Peregrine FalconFalco peregrinus
- Montagu's HarrierCircus pygargus
- Common BuzzardButeo buteo
- Upland BuzzardButeo hemilasius
Waders23 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- RedshankTringa totanus
- Common SandpiperActitis hypoleucos
- Common GreenshankTringa nebularia
- Green SandpiperTringa ochropus
- Temminck's StintCalidris temminckii
- Northern LapwingVanellus vanellusNT
- Terek SandpiperXenus cinereus
- Wood SandpiperTringa glareola
- Little StintCalidris minuta
- Marsh SandpiperTringa stagnatilis
- Eurasian CurlewNumenius arquataNT
- Black-winged StiltHimantopus himantopus
- Common SnipeGallinago gallinago
- RuffCalidris pugnax
- Spotted RedshankTringa erythropus
- Black-tailed GodwitLimosa limosaNT
- Curlew SandpiperCalidris ferrugineaVU
- Ruddy TurnstoneArenaria interpresNT
- Kentish PloverCharadrius alexandrinus
- Eurasian WhimbrelNumenius phaeopus
- IbisbillIbidorhyncha struthersii
- DunlinCalidris alpinaNT
- Eurasian OystercatcherHaematopus ostralegusNT
Gulls & seabirds6 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Black-headed GullChroicocephalus ridibundus
- Common TernSterna hirundo
- Pontic gullLarus cachinnans
- Pallas's GullIchthyaetus ichthyaetus
- Lesser Black-backed GullLarus fuscus
- Gull-billed TernGelochelidon nilotica
Ducks & geese14 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Ruddy ShelduckTadorna ferruginea
- GarganeySpatula querquedula
- MallardAnas platyrhynchos
- Northern PintailAnas acuta
- Tufted DuckAythya fuligula
- GadwallMareca strepera
- Northern ShovelerSpatula clypeata
- Red-crested pochardNetta rufina
- Common PochardAythya ferinaVU
- Ferruginous DuckAythya nyrocaNT
- Eurasian TealAnas crecca
- Eurasian WigeonMareca penelope
- Bar-headed GooseAnser indicus
- Greylag GooseAnser anser
Herons, ibises & grebes6 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Great Crested GrebePodiceps cristatus
- Horned GrebePodiceps auritusVU
- Eared GrebePodiceps nigricollis
- Great CormorantPhalacrocorax carbo
- Grey HeronArdea cinerea
- Glossy IbisPlegadis falcinellus
Storks & cranes2 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Black storkCiconia nigra
- Demoiselle CraneAnthropoides virgo
Songbirds47 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Shore LarkEremophila alpestris
- Citrine WagtailMotacilla citreola
- Isabelline wheatearOenanthe isabellina
- Northern RavenCorvus corax
- Northern WheatearOenanthe oenanthe
- Carrion CrowCorvus corone
- Water PipitAnthus spinoletta
- SkylarkAlauda arvensis
- White WagtailMotacilla alba
- Greenish WarblerPhylloscopus trochiloides
- Snow FinchMontifringilla nivalis
- Barn swallowHirundo rustica
- RookCorvus frugilegus
- ChoughPyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax
- Brown AccentorPrunella fulvescens
- Black RedstartPhoenicurus ochruros
- Siberian stonechatSaxicola maurus
- Grey WagtailMotacilla cinerea
- Common RosefinchCarpodacus erythrinus
- White-winged RedstartPhoenicurus erythrogastrus
- Rufous-tailed ShrikeLanius phoenicuroides
- Pied WheatearOenanthe pleschanka
- Common House MartinDelichon urbicum
- Common Rock ThrushMonticola saxatilis
- WhitethroatSylvia communis
- Plain Mountain-FinchLeucosticte nemoricola
- Eurasian MagpiePica pica
- Eurasian Tree SparrowPasser montanus
- Altai AccentorPrunella himalayana
- Common LinnetLinaria cannabina
- Alpine ChoughPyrrhocorax graculus
- Eurasian Reed WarblerAcrocephalus scirpaceus
- White-throated DipperCinclus cinclus
- White-tailed RubythroatLuscinia pectoralis
- Rosy StarlingPastor roseus
- Hume’s leaf-warblerPhylloscopus humei
- Emberiza buchananiEmberiza buchanani
- Western Yellow WagtailMotacilla flava
- WallcreeperTichodroma muraria
- Sand MartinRiparia riparia
- Oriental SkylarkAlauda gulgula
- Red-fronted SerinSerinus pusillus
- Red-mantled RosefinchCarpodacus rhodochlamys
- BluethroatLuscinia svecica
- Eversmann's RedstartPhoenicurus erythronotus
- Western JackdawColoeus monedula
- TwiteLinaria flavirostris
Other birds7 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- CootFulica atra
- Eurasian HoopoeUpupa epops
- Rock DoveColumba livia
- European SwiftApus apus
- Eurasian Collared DoveStreptopelia decaocto
- Hill PigeonColumba rupestris
- Common CuckooCuculus canorus
Monthly presence relative to all bird records that month, so a busy month does not inflate every species.
When to go
The most species in August.
Species recorded in each month, with the usual temperature and rain.
- Jan-9°/-21°17 mm
- Feb-6°/-18°24 mm
- Mar0°/-10°36 mm
- Apr7°/-4°52 mm
- May12°/0°48 mm
- Jun16°/3°38 mm
- Jul20°/5°25 mm
- Aug20°/5°17 mm
- Sep15°/0°15 mm
- Oct6°/-5°29 mm
- Nov-1°/-11°29 mm
- Dec-7°/-18°24 mm
- Bar: species recorded that month.
- Temperature: average maximum / minimum (NASA, 1991–2020).
- Rain: monthly total.
The place
Song Kol Lake.
Lake in Kyrgyzstan
Song Kol Lake is a wetland of international importance (Ramsar) in Kyrgyzstan, 3,014 m above the sea.
119 bird species have been recorded here more than once, in 1,576 open records.
The most recorded are the Black-headed Gull, the Ruddy Shelduck and the Redshank.
63 species come for the summer, 0 for the winter and 2 only pass through.
3 are threatened worldwide, including Horned Grebe, Common Pochard and Curlew Sandpiper.
The most species are recorded in August.
Get there and watch
- Ak-Sai Yurts Campcampsite · 8.4 km · 35 within 10 km
- Yurt Camp (small family-run)place to stay · 6.4 km · 17 within 10 km
- Manas International Airport (BSZ)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 146 km in a straight lineCar hire at ALA airport (Almaty)Discover Cars · sponsored link↗
Plan the visit
A guided walk, a bed nearby, a car.
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
From above
The place and its surroundings.
The satellite image of the 6 × 6 km around the place, with the bird hides, towers and trails that OpenStreetMap shows.
Around, in OpenStreetMap
- 35campsites within 10 kmAk-Sai Yurts Camp, Yurt Camp, CBT Kochkor Yurt Camp and 32 more
- 17places to stay within 10 kmYurt Camp (small family-run), Song Kol Ordo yurt camp, Song Kol lake "Tilek Yurt camp" and 14 more
- bird hides within 6 km
- observation towers within 6 km
- marked trails within 4 km
- visitor centres within 6 km
- viewpoints within 5 km
- car parks within 3 km
- restaurants and cafés within 3 km
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit. A low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet.
In our other atlases
Around Song Kol Lake.
The lakes, beaches, islands, rivers and mountains around this place, and its night sky, in the family's atlases.
Peakyas5 mountains within 25 kmGory Aktasj · 14 kmChrebet Bauralbas · 17 kmGory Kyzart · 21 kmGory Itelgiuja · 22 kmGory Balykty · 24 km
Figures from the sister sites' databases (Wikidata, HydroATLAS, GeoNames, OpenStreetMap). Links open when each site is online.
Photographs
The place, as people saw it.
Other places nearby.
Song Kol Lake
Kyrgyzstan
- 60Birdyas Score
- 119Species
- 65Migrants
- 3Threatened
Where these figures come from
| Name and type | Wikidata (Q2298945) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Birds | 1,576 open bird records within 6 km (GBIF, CC0 and CC BY 4.0 only; mostly eBird, Cornell Lab of Ornithology) |
| See these records | gbif.org |
| Species | GBIF Backbone Taxonomy · CC BY 4.0; Wikidata (CC0); Wikimedia Commons |
| Altitude | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Temperature and rain | NASA POWER (CERES SYN1deg, 2001–2020; MERRA-2) |
| What is around | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Sister atlases | Peakyas, Lakeyas, Darkskyas |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
Do you prefer beaches, lakes, mountains, waterfalls, islands, rivers, canyons, caves, dark skies, viewpoints, birdwatching or forests?
Same idea, other landscapes: field atlases built on open data, in seven languages.
beaches
Find your beach: sea temperature, sun and swimming month by month.Visit 
lakes
Every lake on Earth: water temperature, ice, depth and the shore.Visit mountains
Every summit in 3D: summit weather, the 0 °C line, huts and trails.Visit 
waterfalls
Every waterfall: height, flow month by month and when it roars.Visit 
islands
Every island from the sea up: size, sea temperature, ferries and 3D.Visit 
rivers
Every river from source to sea: the journey, the flow and the basin in numbers.Visit 
canyons
Every canyon cut to scale: depth to the floor, rim and floor temperatures, trails and viewpoints.Visit 
caves
Every cave with its real depth and length: the rock above, the temperature inside all year, and how to visit.Visit 
dark skies
Where the night is still dark: the sky of every place, the Milky Way month by month, the Moon, eclipses and auroras.Visit 
viewpoints
Every viewpoint with its real 360° panorama: the peaks you can name, how far you see and where the sun sets.Coming soonVisit 
birdwatching
Every bird sanctuary and wetland with the species recorded month by month: who is resident, who comes for the summer, who only passes through.You are here
forests
Every forest with its land-cover rings, what grows and lives in it, and the best months to walk it.Coming soonVisit