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[edit] Overview

This small area is all that remains of a vast stretch of periodically flooded wetlands in the far west of Romania. In the last 200 years most of this landscape has been drained and converted to farmland but about 100ha have been protected as the Satchinez Bird Reserve.

This area of pools, marshes, reedbeds and wet meadows holds important heronries and other breeding birds and this island in a sea of agriculture forms an ideal stopping-off point for migrants. About 150 species have been recorded on the reserve with about 70 breeding.

[edit] Birds

[edit] Notable Species

Breeding species include Grey Heron, Purple Heron, Squacco Heron and Black-crowned Night Heron, Little Egret and both bitterns as well as White Stork, Black-necked Grebe and Marsh Harrier.

This is also the best site in the country for Ferruginous Duck and there are breeding Corn Crake, Spotted Crake and Little Crake.

Passerines include warblers such as Savi's Warbler, Great Reed Warbler, River Warbler and Marsh Warbler, in addition to Bearded Tit and Penduline Tit.

Passage periods see visits from various waders and all three marsh terns and in winter Rough-legged Buzzard, Hen Harrier and Short-eared Owl hunt the marshes.

[edit] Check-list

Birds you can see here include:

Black-necked Grebe, Great Bittern, Little Bittern, Black-crowned Night Heron, Squacco Heron, Little Egret, Grey Heron, Purple Heron, White Stork, Greater White-fronted Goose, Greylag Goose, Ferruginous Duck, Western Marsh Harrier, Hen Harrier, Rough-legged Buzzard, Merlin, Corn Crake, Spotted Crake, Little Crake, Great Bustard, Whiskered Tern, Black Tern, White-winged Tern, Short-eared Owl, Common Grasshopper Warbler, Eurasian River Warbler, Savi's Warbler, Sedge Warbler, Marsh Warbler, Eurasian Reed Warbler, Great Reed Warbler, Bearded Tit, Penduline Tit, Great Grey Shrike, Eurasian Jackdaw

[edit] Other Wildlife

To do

[edit] Site Information

Spring and summer are the best times to visit with the most species present.

[edit] History and Use

To do

[edit] Areas of Interest

The plains areas to the west and north-west of Timisoara are one of the few regular sites for Great Bustard in Romania.

[edit] Access and Facilities

The bird reserve lies close to Satchinez village which is about 25km north-west of Timisoara in the west of Romania.

Timisoara can be reached by road, rail or air from other major Romanian cities.

[edit] Contact Details

To do

[edit] External Links

]http://www.dvhh.org/knees/bird-santuary.htm Satchinez Bird Reserve]

Content and images originally posted by Steve