Kerkini Lake is one of the most important wetlands of Greece. A wide variety of living organisms live, grow and reproduce there which is why the protection of this wetland is vital.
Kerkini Lake is situated 45 km. west of the city of Serres, near the village Lithotopos. Historian and military commander Arrian talks about Kerkinitida Lake where the fleet of Great Alexander was anchored and this is where Kerkini Lake borrows its name from.
Kerkini is an artificial lake and it was created at the position Boutkovo swamp which according to historians used to be the ancient Prasias Lake. In antiquity Strymonas river was worshiped as a God because its waters flowed in the plain of Serres. However when the God got angry, the furious water destroyed everything in its passage. In order to calm down, the God rested the waters in Kerkini Lake. Therefore, the reason for the creation of this artificial lake was to prevent flooding, retain the debris and irrigate the plain of Serres.
Construction of the lake took place between 1928 and 1936 by Monks-Ulen and was completed by the Greek state. The project included the creation of embankments, the construction of the dam, the draining of Achinos Lake, the creation of irrigation canals, the construction of trenches and the management of the streams so as to increase and simultaneously protect all agricultural production, which is the main financial activity of the area.
The creation of the lake favored the development of a wetland of plants and animals which is protected by the Ramsar Convention, the Greek Legislation and the Directive of EOK 79/409. The forest provides shelter to 276 recorded bird species that make up 68% of the species that exist in Greece, 70 of which are rare or endangered, such as the Dalmatian pelican, the White Pelican, the Pygmy Cormorant, the night heron, the spoonbill, the Glossy Ibis, the black stork and all egrets.
Over the years, the capacity of the lake was limited by the debris that was carried in with the waters of Strymonas River. In 1982 a new dam was built, which increased the surface of the lake from 54,000 up to 72,000 acres. The increase of the amount of water affected the dynamics of the wetland: A part of the wet meadows lost its rich aquatic vegetation and the reed beds are almost all gone, while part of the forest has now been turned into farmland, with an obvious impact on the population of birds which were building their nests on the branches of the trees.
Nevertheless, the relatively shallow waters of the lake, along with the ecosystems of the mountains around Kerkini (Beles) and Mavrovounio (Krousia), favor the development of a high biological productivity which is further enhanced by the nutrients that Strymonas River carries with its waters. The combination of the three elements – diversity of vegetation, water and fertile soil - creates a substantial number of habitats that differ in their structure and functionality.
In the spring, when the lake fills and the forest blossoms, Kerkini Lake becomes an important breeding and nesting area for water birds, while the magnificent layer of water lilies on the surface of the lake which covers an area of almost 7 square kilometers , offers an excellent refuge for the fish that live and reproduce under it. The wet meadows have lush vegetation so the shorebirds, the herons and the spoonbills have no difficulty finding nutritious food. In winter, the water level of the lake is reduced and different species of birds migrate in the area.
In the lake there are more than thirty species of fish, such as carps, eels, butterflyfish, sheatfish etc. At the banks there is a significant number of different amphibians, reptiles and invertebrates. In the forest that is peripheral to the lake you will find the largest number of buffalos in Greece. In the region which is adjacent to the lake, you will see many mammals such as jackals, wolves, wild cats, hares, foxes, weasels, deer, badgers etc. Today, the abundance of food in the lake, its geographical position and the diversity of habitats and vegetation contribute to the fact that the wetland is a very important environment for the development of the bird population.
