Serbia · Belgrade

Veliko blato (Belgrade)

Directions

Велико блато

Veliko Blato is a shallow, roughly heart-shaped lake in Krnjača, on the left bank of the Danube, about 10 km north of the centre of Belgrade, where Krnjača, Borča and Ovča meet. It is the largest body of water in the Pančevački Rit marshland, and despite its size thick undergrowth hides it from the road. Its name means “great mud”.

How it formed

The lake has no surface inflow or outflow; the Danube and underground springs replenish it, and canals surround it. It is usually full but sometimes dries out.

History

Josif Pančić found Belgrade’s first orchid specimen here in 1865. In 1961 the Mika Alas carp farm was set up on the lake, and in 1965 the city even considered moving the zoo here. The city declared it a protected habitat in May 2017, after an illegal landfill had grown south of the lake. Dumping, poaching and waste water discharged into the Sebeš canal remain threats, and a sewage spill in 2022 caused a massive fish kill.

Nature

About 120 bird species have been recorded, and the lake holds Belgrade’s only nesting heron colony, with several dozen pairs of little egrets and squacco, grey, night and purple herons; white-tailed eagles come to feed. Around 190 plant species grow here, among them two orchids found nowhere else in Belgrade, the marsh helleborine and Orchis palustris. Protected weatherfish live alongside carp, pike, catfish and zander.

Visit

Swimming

No reliable information

Tips

The lake and the surrounding ponds are fenced off as private property of the Mika Alas farm, which does not admit tourists; bird and nature enthusiasts have to ask its permission. It is not suitable for swimming because of its heavy silt.

Anglers use it for sport fishing, and caught fish must be released.