For visitors with an interest in bird-watching, Lake Kerkini is part of the network of Ramsar sites in Greece. This large lake is in fact a man-made reservoir but seems more like a natural lake because of its setting in a broad valley which was actually the bed of a smaller lake and also a river oxbow. To the north of the lake is the Mt. Kerkini range (highest altitude 2031m) which marks the natural border between Greece and Bulgaria and to the south and south-west lie the mountains of Dysoro and Mavrovouni (1179m). Lake Kerkini is fed by the waters of the River Strymonas which has its source in Bulgaria. The total length of the river is 410km, 290km in Bulgaria and 120km in Greece. The lake was created in 1932 by the building of a dam on the river the aim of which was to prevent flooding and to irrigate the plateau. The marshes and grassland provide the ideal habitat for feeding birds, some of the species which breed here are: herons, cormorants, egrets, pelicans, ducks and terns. Also several kinds of eagles, black kites and sparrowhawks can be spotted in the wooded mountains and hills in the area. |
