YU039
Lake Sasko This is an IBA in Danger! 


Country/territory: Montenegro

IBA criteria met: B1i, B2, B3 (2000)
For more information about IBA criteria, please click here

Area: 350 hectares (3.50 km2)

Centre for Protection and Research of Birds of Montenegro - CZIP
IBA conservation status
Year of assessment (most recent) State (condition) Pressure (threat) Response (action)
2019 good very high low
For more information about IBA monitoring, please click here


Site description (2000 baseline)
A small lake south of Lake Skadar (site 038) and part of the Bojana river catchment. It is situated about 10 km inland from the Adriatic coast, almost on the border with Albania, forming a transboundary IBA with Velipoja (Albanian site 013).

Key biodiversity
A colony of breeding herons and cormorants existed at Lake Sasko formerly, but shifted in the late 1980s and early 1990s, probably to the Albanian side of the border, near the Bojana river. Birds from the colony still visit Lake Sasko regularly to feed. The B2 criterion has been assigned at the site level as the following species of European conservation concern are present during the breeding season, but in largely unknown numbers: Phalacrocorax pygmeus, Botaurus stellaris, Ixobrychus minutus, Nycticorax nycticorax (20 pairs), Ardeola ralloides, Ardea purpurea, Plegadis falcinellus (a few pairs), Anas querquedula, Falco tinnunculus, Perdix perdix, Tringa totanus, Chlidonias niger, Chlidonias hybridus, Bubo bubo, Athene noctua, Otus scops, Picus viridis, Galerida cristata, Lanius senator and Emberiza hortulana. The B3 criterion has been assigned at the site level as the following species of European conservation concern are present during the breeding season, but in unknown numbers: Aythya ferina, Erithacus rubecula, Luscinia megarhynchos, Turdus merula, Locustella luscinioides, Sylvia melanocephala, Sylvia communis, Parus lugubris, Corvus monedula and Emberiza citrinella.


Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Lake Sasko (Montenegro). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/lake-sasko-iba-montenegro on 26/12/2024.