Photo: ZovkoM · CC BY-SA 4.0
Kopačevo Lake (Kopačevsko or Kopačko jezero) is a natural lake in Osijek-Baranja County in eastern Croatia, the largest lake in Kopački Rit Nature Park. It lies east of the village of Kopačevo, from which it takes its name, in the floodplain where the Drava meets the Danube. Its size follows the water level of the Danube, so it is a different lake in a flood year than in a dry one.
How it formed
Kopački rit is a floodplain where the Drava meets the Danube. Each spring, meltwater from the Alps raises the rivers and floods the marsh for much of the spring, and by the end of summer the water drains away again. Kopačko jezero and Sakadaš are the only parts of the rit that stay under water all year. Kopačko jezero, in the centre of the park, is its largest lake, shallow and spreading wider in flood years.
Nature
Kopački rit is one of the great bird places of the Danube: hundreds of species have been recorded, and a good spring or autumn day can bring dozens of them. White-tailed eagles hunt over the lakes, cormorants and geese crowd the drowned white-willow forests in spring and migrating ducks arrive in autumn. The lakes hold pike, carp, tench, bream, wels catfish and perch, and beavers live along the channels.
Visit
Swimming
No reliable information
Tips
The lake belongs to the Kopački Rit wetland, where it is usually called Kopačko Lake, the largest of the park’s lakes; Sakadaš is the deepest. The village of Kopačevo stands next to the park’s visitor centre, with an eco-museum on the wetland’s history, plants and animals. Fishing is allowed only in designated areas with a permit, including one-day permits, and bicycles can be rented at the park. Pike, ide, tench, bream, carp, catfish and perch live in the lake, and the park is rich in birds. Visit in more than one season, since the floods change the landscape, and try the fish stew fiš paprikaš in a Kopačevo restaurant.
The park’s large boat sails from Sakadaš through the Čonakut channel to Kopačko jezero on a guided tour of about an hour; smaller boats and guided canoe trips go into the narrow channels. April to June and August to October are the best months for birds, and September brings the rut of the red deer. The park lies about 12 km from Osijek, signposted through Bilje.
Nearby lakes
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Sources & data
- Croatian Wikipedia: Kopačevsko jezero, Wikimedia Foundation
- Statistički ljetopis Republike Hrvatske 2004, table 1-11 "Jezera / Lakes", Državni zavod za statistiku, 2004
- Croatia's 2022 Water Framework Directive reporting to the EEA: lake water bodies (SWB, category LW), field cArea, European Environment Agency (WISE WFD), reported by Croatia, 2022
- Wikidata: None (Q25295427), Wikimedia Foundation
- Kopački Rit in a page, Total Croatia News
- Bird watching / photo-safari, Kopački Rit Nature Park
- Tourist dock Sakadaš, Kopački rit Nature Park