Census results of the Northern Lapwing (Vanellus Vanellus, Charadriiformes) on the Olonets Fields of Karelia, Northwestern Russia in 1993–2023

In 1993–2023, censusing the Northern Lapwing, Vanellus vanellus (Linnaeus 1758), was conducted on the fields in the vicinity of Olonets City, southern Karelia, northwestern Russia. This communication presents these census data and the results of monitoring the numbers of migrating and breeding individuals performed using a unified methodology in 1997–2019 and 2023. During the research period, between 450 and 3,500 individuals were estimated to have migrated through the Olonets fields annually. The breeding population of the Olonets fields varied between 170 and 710 pairs per year. The years of monitoring revealed no significant changes in the numbers of lapwings, neither breeding nor migrating. The numbers of the lapwings recorded was found to be influenced neither by local weather conditions nor the extent of field exploitation. There was also no significant correlation revealed between the numbers of lapwings and the population of the Barnacle Goose, Branta leucopsis (Bechstein 1803), a species that has seen a significant increase in its abundance over the years of monitoring.