Current view: Text account
Site description (2000 baseline):
Site location and context
The site contains one of the few freshwater lakes in Crete, as well as coastal marshes, a brackish lake, sand-dunes, cliffs and a marine zone.
This is an important site for breeding, migrant and wintering waterbirds and passerines. Species of global conservation concern that do not meet IBA criteria:
Phalacrocorax pygmeus (wintering),
Aythya nyroca (wintering),
Aquila clanga (passage),
Gallinago media (passage, wintering),
Larus audouinii (wintering).
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
The main threats are from the building of hotels, disturbance from tourists, groundwater abstraction and hunting. There has been a LIFE project investigating protection and management of the site. The site is a candidate SAC.
National None
International None
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Lake Kourna, Almyros delta and Georgioupolis coast, Crete (Greece). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/lake-kourna-almyros-delta-and-georgioupolis-coast-crete-iba-greece on 26/12/2024.
