Current view: Text account
Site description (2000 baseline):
Site location and context
The largest freshwater lake in Turkey (max. depth 10 m), 75 km west of Konya. Fluctuating water-levels give a surface area of between 60,000 and 73,000 ha; the lake is fed by mountain streams and several springs. To the north is the Kýzýldað
Cedrus forest; to the east the land is under agriculture. Three of the 30 islands are inhabited, others are farmed, the majority are deserted. Narrow reedbeds (
Phragmites) fringe the shores with extensive tracts in bays in the east and south-west. Human activities include reed-cutting (`Other' land-use).
The site is important for large numbers of wintering wildfowl. Breeding colonies of
Phalacrocorax carbo,
Pelecanus crispus,
Nycticorax nycticorax and
Egretta garzetta were formerly present on the islands.
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
Water-levels have fallen considerably in recent years, mainly as a result of abstraction˜DSÝ intends to increase the amount of water abstracted for irrigation schemes. The lake is polluted by untreated industrial discharges, waste from nearby villages and agricultural run-off. Holiday-home construction and associated sand extraction have begun on the shores west of Bey°ehir. Fish diversity declined following the 1978 introduction of pike-perch
Stizostedion lucioperca, and out-of-season fishing is a problem.
National High
International None73,000 ha of IBA covered by Drinking Water Reservoir (Beyþehir Gölü, 73,000 ha). 73,000 ha of IBA covered by National Park (Beyþehir, 88,750 ha). 73,000 ha of IBA covered by SÝT (Beyþehir Gölü, 73,000 ha).
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Beyşehir Lake (Türkiye). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/beyşehir-lake-iba-türkiye on 23/11/2024.
