Drumkul, also spelt Dirumkul, is an artificial

freshwater Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. Although the term specifically excludes seawater and brackish water, it does include ...

lake in southern Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Province in eastern Tajikistan. The lake and its surrounds have been identified by

BirdLife International BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding ...

as a 380 km²

Important Bird Area An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations. IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...

(IBA).

Description

Drumkul lies some 75 km east of the provincial capital of Khorog, in the northern part of the Shugnanskiy ridge of the

Pamir Mountains The Pamir Mountains are a mountain range between Central Asia and Pakistan. It is located at a junction with other notable mountains, namely the Tian Shan, Karakoram, Kunlun, Hindu Kush and the Himalaya mountain ranges. They are among the world ...

. The area has a semi-arid climate. The lake is 3345 m above sea level and was formed by damming the Dumdara River, a tributary of the Shohdara river, which is fed by

meltwater Meltwater is water released by the melting of snow or ice, including glacial ice, tabular icebergs and ice shelves over oceans. Meltwater is often found in the ablation zone of glaciers, where the rate of snow cover is reducing. Meltwater can be ...

from the glaciers of the Rushan ridge. It is 3.5 km long, 200–300 m wide and has a maximum depth of 45 m. It contains submerged aquatic vegetation.

Birds

The site qualifies as an IBA because the lake and its environs support significant numbers of the populations of various bird species, either as residents, or as breeding or passage migrants. These include

Himalayan snowcock The Himalayan snowcock (''Tetraogallus himalayensis'') is a snowcock in the pheasant family Phasianidae found across the Himalayan ranges and parts of the adjoining Pamir range of Asia. It is found on alpine pastures and on steep rocky cliffs wh ...

ruddy shelduck The ruddy shelduck (''Tadorna ferruginea''), known in India as the Brahminy duck, is a member of the family Anatidae. It is a distinctive waterfowl, in length with a wingspan of . It has orange-brown body plumage with a paler head, while the ...

s, common mergansers, saker falcons, Himalayan vultures,

ibisbill The ibisbill (''Ibidorhyncha struthersii'') is a bird related to the waders, but sufficiently distinctive to merit its own family Ibidorhynchidae. It is grey with a white belly, red legs and long down-curved bill, and a black face and black breas ...

s, snow pigeons, yellow-billed choughs,

Hume's lark Hume's short-toed lark (''Calandrella acutirostris'') is a species of lark in the family Alaudidae. It is found in south-central Asia from Iran and Kazakhstan to China. Taxonomy and systematics The name commemorates the British naturalist Allan ...

sulphur-bellied warbler The sulphur-bellied warbler (''Phylloscopus griseolus'') is a species of leaf-warbler found in the Palearctic region (Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Russian Federation entral Asian Russia Tajikistan and Turkmenistan). It was earl ...

s, wallcreepers,

Himalayan rubythroat The Himalayan rubythroat (''Calliope pectoralis'') is a species of passerine bird in the family Muscicapidae. It is closely related to the Siberian rubythroat which however lacks the distinctive white tail-tips and white tail bases. It was also ...

s, white-winged redstarts, white-winged snowfinches, alpine accentors,

rufous-streaked accentor The Altai accentor (''Prunella himalayana'') is a species of bird in the family Prunellidae. It is also known as the rufous-streaked accentor or Himalayan accentor. It breeds in the Altai Mountains of western Mongolia; it winters in the southern ...

brown accentor The brown accentor (''Prunella fulvescens'') is a species of bird in the family Prunellidae. It is found in Afghanistan, China, India, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Nepal, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. Its natural habitat ...

s, water pipits, plain mountain finches,

black-headed mountain finch Brandt's mountain finch (''Leucosticte brandti''), also known as the black-headed mountain-finch, is a species of finch in the family Fringillidae. It is found in Afghanistan, Bhutan, China, India, Kazakhstan, Nepal, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan ...

es, crimson-winged finches,

red-mantled rosefinch The red-mantled rosefinch (''Carpodacus rhodochlamys'') is a species of finch in the family Fringillidae. It is found in Afghanistan, China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Pakistan, Russia, and Tajikistan. Its natural habitats are temperate f ...

es,

Caucasian great rosefinch The great rosefinch (''Carpodacus rubicilla'') is a species of finch in the family Fringillidae. It is found in Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan and east to ...

es and red-fronted rosefinches.

References

Important Bird Areas of Tajikistan Lakes of Tajikistan Reservoirs in Tajikistan Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region {{Tajikistan-geo-stub