Razim–Sinoie Lagoons

The Razim–Sinoie lagoons are a complex of limans and lagoons on the Black Sea coast south of the Danube Delta, part of the delta's World Heritage Site. Razim, or Razelm, is the largest liman in Romania. The northern subgroup holds the fresh water of Razim and Golovița, joined by a channel, and the southern subgroup is made up of salt lakes, among them Sinoe. When the Razim and Golovița system was closed off from the sea in the late 1970s, its salinity fell to almost zero and its water took longer than a year to refresh, with episodes of eutrophication, yet it remains an important habitat. Popina Island, at the north end of Razim, is a refuge for many birds and invertebrates, and the ruins of the ancient Greek colony of Histria stand on the shore of Sinoe.