Live Life Team
Turkey is recognised as an ideal bird watching destination for its striking landscape, abundant marshlands and important location in bird migration.
Recently, the popularity of bird viewing in Turkey has increased and its total number of bird species equals the total bird species found within all of Europe. This is due to the country’s location. Birds migrate over parts of Turkey, and those areas are important for the migration routes. Bird Observation towers and observation stations are built within several Important Bird Areas (‘IBA’) in Turkey, which include Deltasi, Izmir, Goksu, Manyas and many others. These bird observation towers and observation stations are further improved through the ornito-tourism project.
During the spring and autumn seasons, important migration points can be observed in the Canakkale Straits and Istanbul, North East Anatolia (Atrvin, Kars, Rize) and the Eastern Mediterranean Region (Adana, Gaziantep, Hatay). The North East Anatolia region holds significant potential, specifically with preying birds.
Presently, ’bird observation groups‘ have been established within several cities in the country. The groups share registries and information through the Internet regarding their observations.
The Important Bird Areas project was established in 1989 by the International Bird Protection Council to determine, protect and monitor specific sites that provide important habitat for bird populations. The IBA Turkey Project, which started in 1990 and is managed by the Natural Protection Foundation, continues to identify new IBAs while extending the observation and protection of the development of established sites. The project’s activities consist of lobbying and campaign activities as well as the creation of public forums about several IBAs in Turkey.
