Neusiedl

Neusiedl lies on the border between Austria and Hungary and is the second largest steppe lake in Central Europe. It is about 20 miles long by 5 miles wide, but is nowhere more than six feet deep (indeed, it occasionally dries out). The lake is fringed with a belt of huge reed-beds of enormous ecological productivity. A great variety of wetland birds breed in the area in huge numbers, the main concentration being in the Seewinkel National Park, based near Illmitz.

Storm clouds gathering over Neusiedl

Here the surrounding fields (interspersed with vineyards) are managed as wetlands for breeding wading birds, like Ruff, Avocet, Black-winged Stilts, and waterfowl like Red-crested Pochard, Gargany and Greylag Goose. White Storks arrive from their nests in surrounding villages to look for frogs and insects in the wetland. The area is also a haven for migratory birds as a feeding-up stopover on their route to breeding grounds in the Arctic - I saw Common and Wood Sandpipers and Spotted Redshank, to name just a couple.

Vast area of reed beds stretch to the horizon

A Marsh Harrier hunts over the reed beds surrounding the shores of Neusiedl

Here are a few memories of my afternoon in the National Park









Visitor Centre

Picnic lunch

A mosaic of wetland areas provide a haven for waterfowl and wading birds

A pair of Avocets feeds on plankton

An Avocet feeds in the rain, skimming plankton through its specially adapted up-turned bill. Can you see the stream of water falling from its bill?

Patches of open water provide a habitat for waterfowl like Gargany and Greylag Geese

White Storks nesting in surrounding villages fly to the Neusiedl to feed

A Spoonbill flies in at dusk to roost in the trees

It was possible to visit only a small portion of the National Park on this occasion. I have no doubt that I shall return. I recorded 73 bird species during my visit to Austria, the highlights being Nightingale, White Stork, Marsh Harrier, Hobby, Great White Egret, Ruff (in breeding plumage), Red-crested Pochard, Wood Sandpiper, Great Reed Warbler, Gargany, Spoonbill, Savi's Warbler, and Serin.