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Description
This little known but still beautiful place is located south-east of the city center. It presents a great mixture of habitats, including field, meadow, forest, marsh and city habitats. The fields and pastures are connected to the rest of Belgrade through Veliki Mokri Lug and Kumodraž, so it can be easily accesed. It boasts a great deal of birds year-round, with there being both common birds like pěnice černohlavá, poštolka obecná, vrabec polní and strakapoud velký and birds that are less common and hard to find near urban areas such as bělořit šedý, bramborníček hnědý, žluna šedá, linduška horská, lejsek bělokrký, vlha pestrá (be aware that many of the mentioned birds are not always there, you have to visit at the right time and have some luck).
The best time to visit is winter when many finch species are regular, including hýl obecný, dlask tlustozobý, pěnkava jikavec, čížek lesní, konopka obecná and stehlík obecný, as well as many thrush species like drozd kvíčala, drozd cvrčala, kos černý, and drozd brávník. Regular in winter are also králíček obecný, králíček ohnivý, pěvuška modrá, čírka obecná, sýkora uhelníček, střízlík obecný, linduška luční and many others. In winter, all of the water birds come to the ponds. kachna divoká can be seen from late autumn to may(can be spotted in flyovers year-round). čírka obecná is here from late autumn but leaves before spring begins. Chřástal vodní and Slípka zelenonohá are guaranteed from october to april, but moorhens can stay longer(maybe even present year-round). vodouš kropenatý and pisík obecný can be spotted in winter, and are not always there.
During spring migration, many different birds can be seen, including leaving trushes and finches, and incoming birds, like čáp černý, čáp bílý, bramborníček hnědý, konipas luční, dudek chocholatý, budníček menší, skřivan lesní, slavík obecný, vlaštovka obecná, rorýs obecný, rehek zahradní during the early and middle parts of migration, and vlha pestrá, ťuhýk obecný, krutihlav obecný, strnad luční, Žluva hajní, pěnice pokřovní, pěnice hnědokřídlá křepelka polní and výreček malý in later parts of migration.
Although spring and summer are a bit worse in variety than autumn and winter, they still offer great birding. Especially in this period should you be looking out for less common flyover birds in this area and terrain, including rorýs velký, ostříž lesní and břehule říční. luňák hnědý, kvakoš noční, kukačka obecná, volavka stříbřitá, pěnice slavíková can and all have been spotted in this period.
Autumn migration marks the end of summer and the arrival and passage of many birds, like linduška lesní, budníček lesní, ťuhýk obecný , slavík obecný and lejsek šedý in great numbers, but you can also find lejsek černohlavý and budníček větší, včelojed lesní is a common flyover here, and even slavík tmavý (a very rare bird in Serbia) has been spotted here for 2 years in a row.
All of these birds are here because of the diversity of this place, mentioned earlier. It is important to know what habitat to visit for the right type of bird. So for example, if you want to see kalous ušatý and sýček obecný you should search the streets and roofs and backyards of houses. If you want to see žluna zelená and Žluva hajní, you should search the trees and tree lanes scattered all around the place, especially in Veliki Mokri Lug. Houses and backyards in Stari Vinogradi street regulary house králíček obecný, hýl obecný, sýček obecný, výreček malý, sýkora uhelníček, Žluva hajní, rehek zahradní and many others.
For some of the birds mentioned, you have to be lucky and search at the right time. Many birds have been sighted here that you will almost definetly not find because of their rarity for the region or habitat. Exampes include moták lužní, jestřáb lesní sokol stěhovavý, rorýs šedohnědý, slavík tmavý, moták stepní, orlovec říční, strnad černohlavý, sedmihlásek hajní rákosník obecný, rákosník velký, rákosník zpěvný, luňák červený, orlovec říční and others.
A stunning Belgrade city panorama stretching half the horizon can be seen at the slopes parallel to the Stari Vinogradi ('Old Vineyards') street. From there, the wast greeny hillside towards the Kumodraž suburbs can be observed, with numerous straka obecná, havran polní, vrána šedá and occasional krahujec obecný or poštolka obecná. Small herds of goats and sheep are still grazing these greeny slopes, protecting the meadows from overgrowing with scrubs.
This location is also great for planespotting. Standing on the earlier mentioned viewpoint at the very entrance and the top of the hill, you can see most of the city, including a silhouette of the Nikola Tesla airport. Every plane landing or taking off from the east side of the airport will be very low in the sky, where you can get a great look at it because of the open terrain and panorama view.
In conclusion, take some time to visit this birding place before the constant urbanization conquers it fully. You will certainly not regret it.
Details
Access
Take an E-75 highway from Belgrade city center towards Niš, then take the 'Lasta' exit and follow the directions to the 'P' mark on the map in the Stari Vinogradi street. Alternatively, head towards the Kumodraž suburbs and park on the second 'P' mark at the south part of the map. Bus lines 20, 308 and 38 lead to Veliki Mokri Lug, and bus lanes 33, 25P, 39, lead to Kumodraž. Bus lane 312 cirlces Veliki Mokri Lug. Bus stops 'Stari Vinogradi' and 'Buljubašine vode' are located near the entrance to the fields from the side of Veliki Mokri Lug.
Terrain and Habitat
Forest , Scattered trees and bushes , Grassland , Plateau , City/village , Agriculture , Reedbeds , PondConditions
Flat , Hilly , Open landscapeCircular trail
YesIs a telescope useful?
Can be usefulGood birding season
All year roundBest time to visit
Winter , Spring migration , Autumn migrationRoute
Paved road , Unpaved road , Narrow trailDifficulty walking trail
Average walkAccessible by
Foot , BicycleBirdwatching hide / platform
NoExtra info
Conditions can be pretty muddy after the rain, thus prepare the boots if you plan to leave the paved roads.
If you plan on venturing deeper looking for birds, you should be wary about dogs. Even though they likely have an owner and rarely show up, they can group up and potentialy become aggresive and start barking. Means of defense (like pepper spray) are recommended.
The terrain is very uneven and sometimes hard to traverse and there are many grass roots(surprisingly tough) that can get your leg stuck, so you should be careful.
Always wear pants or trousers that cover your legs completely if you want to venture in deeper grass looking for birds, there are a lot of thorns and seeds that can cut you or get stuck on you.
Links
- 'Njive i Živice između Velikog Mokrog Luga i Kumodraža' eBird hotspot
- 'Naselje Stepa Stepanović' eBird hotspot
- 'Naselje Kumodraž' eBird hotspot
- 'Naselje Veliki Mokri Lug' eBird hotspot