Serbia · Vojvodina

Okanj bara

Directions

Окањ бара

Okanj bara is a saline oxbow lake near Elemir, close to Zrenjanin in the Banat, ringed by saline steppe meadows, reed beds and mudflats. With Rusanda it forms the Important Bird Area “Okanj and Rusanda”.

How it formed

The lake is an old meander of the Tisa, now about 4.5 km from the river’s left bank. Its water is brackish, and where the edges are extremely salty only short, salt-loving plants grow.

Nature

Herons have traditionally bred here, and a mixed colony with spoonbills formed in 1998, with great egrets and grey and purple herons. Whimbrels, curlews, black-winged stilts, avocets and black-tailed godwits feed along the shore, and garganeys, teals and shovelers on the water. All four harrier species, marsh, hen, Montagu’s and pallid, are recorded here.

Visit

Getting there

Nearest settlement: Elemir

Swimming

No reliable information

Tips

Come from the south: a paved road runs from Elemir straight to the observation platform. The dirt road from the north, off the Melenci–Kumane road, often turns to impassable mud and is not for ordinary cars.

Spring and autumn migration are the best times. The reserve is large, so on a short visit keep to the platform and the south shore; with more time, try the saline meadows and small ponds to the north and north-west. The ground is flat and open, with no shade, and a telescope helps.