Birding Lake Kerkini

Birding at Lake Kerkini

Lake Kerkini is known as Greece’s premier spot for bird watching. People travel from all over the country and abroad to go birding there. There are several reasons the spot is so popular. Over 140 species of birds make their home in the area, including several endangered species. More than 170 additional species migrate through the area on a yearly basis, so you can see hundreds of species during one bird watching trip. In addition, the area is simply lovely, with mountains and forests and other wildlife in abundance. The area offers a number of other activities in addition to bird watching, of course, if you want something else to do or if you want to make it a family trip.

When to Go

One of the nice things about bird watching at Lake Kerkini is that you can go at any time of the year and find plenty of birds to observe. There is not just one short bird watching season there. However, depending on what you want to see, you may prefer to go at certain times of the year. Lake Kerkini lies along the migration path of a great number of birds, so if you visit in the spring or fall, you can see birds that don’t normally live there along with all the species that make the area their home. April is a particularly good month to go if you want to see migrating birds. On the other hand, if you want to see birds breeding, May and June are good months to visit. There are also a number of non-native birds that winter in the area, if you are interested in planning a winter trip.

What You’ll See

The best bird watching is in the downed forest around the lake. To get a good look, you’ll need to take a boat tour. In the wetlands around the lake, you can find a wide variety of birds, including Black Storks, White Storks, Greater Flamingoes, Purple Herons, Squacco Herons, Grey Herons, Blue Cranes, Spoonbills, and a variety of Warblers. You can also find some endangered species, like Dalmatian Pelicans and Pygmy Cormorants.

In the surrounding mountains and forests, you can find even more birds, including Peregrine Falcons, White-tailed Eagles, Golden Eagles, Booted Eagles, Lesser Spotted Eagles, Black Woodpeckers, Nutcrackers, Golden Orioles, and Blue Rock Thrush. In order to see all the birds the area has to offer, you should definitely plan to spend a few days birding in the surrounding hillsides and not just confine your activities to the lakeside.

Planning Your Trip

If you are planning a trip to Lake Kerkini, of course you will need to decide what time of year you want to travel. You will also need to decide how long you want to stay. Because there are so many birds to see and because both the lakeside itself and the surrounding hills and forests offer excellent birding, it is recommended that you plan to stay for several days. Some people prefer to travel throughout the region, birding in both Greece and Bulgaria, and of course you can do that if you want to. But there is really enough to see at Lake Kerkini to keep you busy there for a week or so.

You can plan your trip yourself or you can contact a travel agency to help you make the arrangements. If you make your own arrangements, you can simply go on walking tours of the lakeside and surrounding woodlands on your own, but you can also make arrangements for birding tours at most of the hotels in the area. Most birding tours will also include a boat ride so you can view the birds roosting in the downed forest beside the lake.