Vol. 76 (1) 2024

ARTICLES

Importance of Agricultural Areas for the Distribution of Protected Amphibian Species in Bulgaria

Georgi Popgeorgiev1, Simeon Lukanov2,*, Blagovesta Dimitrova2 & Borislav Naumov2

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1National Museum of Natural History, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, blvd. Tzar Osvoboditel 1, 1000 Sofia, Bulgaria
*2Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, 2 Gagarin Street, 1113 Sofia, Bulgaria; simeon_lukanov@abv.bg

https://doi.org/10.71424/azb76.1.002709

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Abstract
We mapped the distribution for the past 18 years (2004–2022) of five protected amphibian species across Bulgaria using a spatial resolution of 100 m2 in CORINE Land Cover 2018 (CLC). Since the altitudinal distribution and habitat preferences of these species in the country make them potentially vulnerable to agricultural activities, the primary aim was to establish what part of the known records of each species falls within agricultural lands. Results indicated that all five studied species inhabit CLC types falling within the general type “Agricultural areas” (CLC Level 1: 2), with four species predominantly occurring in such regions. In total, three species (Bombina bombina, Triturus cristatus and T. ivanbureschi) had more than 50% of their distribution records in agricultural areas. In another species, Triturus dobrogicus, the percentage was above 40%. The lowest number (under 36%) was for B. variegata. For T. dobrogicus, nearly 32% of all records were concentrated in the CLC Level 3 category “Non-irrigated arable lands”. This data suggests that a large percentage of the populations of these protected species across Bulgaria are potentially exposed to agricultural practices such as pesticide use, or crop land aggregation and highlight the need for regional approach for species protection.

Key words
conservation, CORINE Land Cover, occurrence records, Bombina, Triturus

How to Cite
Popgeorgiev G., Lukanov S., Dimitrova B. & Naumov B. 2024. Importance of Agricultural Areas for the Distribution of Protected Amphibian Species in Bulgaria. Acta zoologica bulgarica 76 (1) 87-96.

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