Frequent low flights by British military helicopters over the Akrotiri Salt Lake are at the centre of representations to the British Bases, because of the disturbance they cause to wildlife and migratory birds, according to a report broadcast by ANT1.
The relevant state services have asked the Bases to change the tactics and routes of their helicopters to reduce disturbance in the area.
The issue arises at a time of heightened bird presence at Cyprus’s salt lakes, ANT reports on its website.
Rain over recent weeks has raised water levels, and the first flamingos have already arrived.
Nikos Kasinis, a senior officer at the Game and Fauna Service, said on October 9 that about 250 million migratory birds pass through Cyprus each year.
As part of this monitoring, the Game and Fauna Service, working with BirdLife and the British Bases, also carried out a sea survey of Eleonora’s falcons. The species nests on coastal cliffs from Akrotiri to Cape Aspro in Pissouri.
The request to the Bases on the low flights remains specific: a change of tactics and routes to limit disturbance at the wetland.