The prolonged drought in California leaves the cranes and millions of waterfowl that migrate from Canada and other Northern countries for winter in California, less coastal habitat that threatens their health, as they begin to compete for a place for nesting and food.

The birds is a little room that will soon begin to have a negative impact on the populations, said experts on the habitat of the California Audubon Society. Birds can die from hunger, disease or not have the energy for the flight back to the North.

The Central valley of California in winter provide shelter to 60% of the 10 000 remaining in the world of Canadian major types of cranes.

The organized reserves to replace natural habitats that are degraded by construction of dams in the most densely populated state in the United States, this year also suffered from the drought, and the birds became less available wetlands.

And ironically, the farmers, which some defenders of natural resources has been criticized for abundant watering their corn, rice and alfalfa fields, significantly reduced the amounts of irrigation, as the drought dragged on conserving water, but reduced the habitat for waterfowl, which nest in flooded fields.

Negative influence of agricultural fields available to the birds, do not have abundant watering, huge, said the project lead, National Wildlife Refuge Complex in Sacramento.

In the Sacramento Valley North of the Delta flooded field, rich with unused grain, insects, and other nutrients that provide nourishment to the half of migratory birds every year.

But this year, producing rice, the farmers planned to fill only 100 000 out of 300 000 acres, which typically cover approximately five inches of water reported by the experts of the Commission on California rice.

The area of wetlands also decreased in the reserves, managed by state and Federal agencies.

Catastrophic drought in the state, continued its fourth year, has led to the fact that the control bodies of water in California has reduced the water allocation for nature reserves by 45% in 2015.

The rains helped to ease drought conditions in the southern part of the state due to weather phenomenon El niño, which would also provide a more moist habitat of migratory birds.

But El niño does not always bring rains to the North in the Sacramento Valley or the Delta region, so there is a chance that dry conditions will remain here, and birds will die.