Sasali Birdwatching - Gediz Wetland near Izmir

Saturday, 07 December 2013 11:15
Written by Portal Editor

Sasali - Turkey is one of the countries with the largest areas of floodplains and wetlands in Europe and the Middle East. These wetlands have a great influence and importance for wildlife as well as for the local economy.

Turkey is one of the countries with the largest areas of floodplains and wetlands in Europe and the Middle East. These wetlands have a great influence and importance for wildlife as well as for the local economy.

The Gediz Delta is the river delta at the confluence of the Gediz River and the Gulf of Izmir in the Izmir Province of western Turkey. It is a 14,900 ha area that occupies coastal parts of the Foça, Menemen and Çiğli districts.

Sasali - Birdwatching at the Gediz Delta

It is one of the largest coastal wetlands in Turkey and has a great diversity of plants and birds. The Gediz Delta has been a Ramsar site since 1998 and an Important Bird Area since 2000. It is located 26 km from Izmir city center.

The Gediz (also Gediz Nehri), the ancient Hermos, is a river in Turkey in western Asia Minor and, at 405 km, is the second longest body of water in the region after the Great Meander.

The river rises in the mountains of Lydia between the mountain town of Gediz and the Murat Dağı (2309 m), where the Great Meander also has its northern source, Banaz Çayı.

After almost 300 km, it reaches the wide east-west valley near the ancient ruined city of Sardes, flows through Manisa and flows into the Gulf of Izmir 30 km northwest of Izmir and 10 km southeast of Foça.

The estuary of the Gediz forms a river delta over 20 km wide, which has noticeably expanded towards the sea over the course of history - like the Great and Small Meander.

The southern delta (opposite Izmir) forms an extensive swamp area.

Turkey forms a natural bridge between the continents of Europe, Asia and Africa for the movement of peoples but also of course for animals. In particular, at Gediz and in its immediate wetland surroundings, you can find more than 334 species of birds that rest here on their journey or have settled here over time.

A paradise for bird watchers. The nearby Bafa Lake also offers excellent opportunities for bird watching.

In 1998, the entire Gediz delta was given special protection (Ramsar Areas) due to its high international importance as a cultural asset worthy of protection in the area of wetlands and it was the first of five other areas to be placed under international protection (Waterfowl Habitat).

In total, the delta covers more than 15,000 hectares of wetland where the Gediz River flows into the Mediterranean. With its lakes and sand dunes, its population of birds and rare plants and above all its loggerhead turtles and green chelonia turtles, the area offers unique natural beauties, yes, it can be called a natural wonderland.

Wetlands are at the top of the hierarchy of ecosystems and are therefore of utmost importance for the existence of birds. Measured by international criteria, Turkey has 19 of these first-class wetlands.

Sasali - Flora and fauna in the Gediz Delta

The delta is home to more than 330 species of birds and is home to around 80,000 birds in winter. It provides shelter for 10% of the world's flamingo population. In addition to the already special biodiversity of the wetlands, the Sasali Delta also includes the natural animal species of the Mediterranean region and the adjacent Taurus areas.

The region is also home to the peregrine falcon, greater spotted eagle, red kite, griffon vulture and many species of songbirds.

The southeast of Turkey offers some of the most beautiful bird watching areas in all of Europe and it is common to hear of previously unknown species being discovered by ornithologists.

It has everything: excellent wetlands equipped with the most important things that nature has to offer, an estuary delta, some dry areas with an almost desert-like character and the inhabitants associated with them in the western part of the region and the snow-capped mountain peaks of up to 4000 meters on the horizon.

All of these advantages combined make it possible to visit all of these natural features in just a few hours' drive, making even a short visit extremely interesting.

On the history of the area

The oldest, reliably dated Stone Age tool on Turkish soil to date was discovered in prehistoric deposits in the river, a worked fragment around 1.2 million years old. Remains of the former Ionian city of Leucae can be found in the delta.