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Deliblato Sands Reserve – Šušara Area

Vojvodina  >  Serbia

Steppe, woodland, scrub, conifer plantations, vineyards and agricultural land, about an hour and a half drive east of Belgrade.

Added* by Dragan Simic
Most recent update 15 srpnja 2025

Description

For several days in the Deliblato Sands Nature Reserve, the best base choice would be the Kaštel Marijeta (Mariette) Guest House in the Šušara Village (90 min from Belgrade), in and around the village offering Grlica , Leganj , Ćuk , Zlatovrana , Pupavac , Pčelarica , Crna žuna , Vuga , Rusi Svračak , Ševa Krunica , Kukmasta Ševa , Pjegava Grmuša , Slavuj , Mrka Crvenrepka , Primorska Trepetljka , Batokljun and, in winter, Sjeverna Zeba , Drozd Imelaš , and Mali Drozd. Generally, the best birding is in ecotones where forest meets grassland, and wherever there is any source of water (usually a watering hole for numerous sheep).

Behind the village are planted forests of Locust Tree, Austrian Pine and Scots Pine, inhabited by Red Deer, Wild Boar and Golden Jackal.

There's not much shade, so wear a hat and carry at least a litre of water per person. You can restock at petrol stations, but do not count on village shops with their erratic opening hours.

Details

Access

Šušara is reachable from Belgrade through Pančevo towards Vršac till Uljma, then right to Izbište, and right again to Šušara (85 km). It is not reachable from Deliblato, as suggested by Google Maps, unless you are driving a Hummer or similar! Zoom in on the map and click on the "P" (parking) sign for driving directions, but be careful how you interpret them.

If driving along some of the local unpaved tracks (99%), be extra careful not to start a wildfire by an overheated exhaust pipe! Also, don’t damage the sensitive steppe vegetation by driving at will: follow only the existing dirt tracks and be careful not to get lost, nor stuck in loose sand.

Terrain and Habitat

Forest , Steppe , Agriculture , Scattered trees and bushes , Grassland , Dunes

Conditions

Sandy , No shadow , Dry , Open landscape , Dusty

Circular trail

No

Is a telescope useful?

Can be useful

Good birding season

All year round

Best time to visit

Spring , Spring migration , Autumn migration

Route

Unpaved road , Wide path

Difficulty walking trail

Average walk

Accessible by

Foot , Car

Birdwatching hide / platform

No

Extra info

Adapted from the media, mostly by Google translate: Northwest of Šušara, "Korn is a steppe area where the 'Orlovac' feeding station was fenced off for protected birds of prey – Stepski sokol , Orao krstaš [both so rare that they are anything but realistic], Štekavac and Orao Kliktaš [possible, but I still have to see one] – as well as an observation tower [in reality, unmaintained, rotten and out of use].

It is the largest feeding station for raptors in Serbia, dimensions 120x60m, where food is delivered to threatened bird species throughout the year, especially in the period September-March [in reality, dead animals are delivered so irregularly that raptors do not have the habit of visiting the station].

The gradual clearing of the site created the largest open area of steppe habitats in the entire Deliblato Sands, where former plant inhabitants such as the peony [Serbian: stepski božur], are slowly returning, and [a dozen] years ago we also reintroduced here the European Ground Squirrel [I have to see one yet], the most important inhabitant of such habitats and an important link in the food chain. Today, 400 sheep and 100 goats graze in this area" [not sure about these numbers, but some 300 Angus cattle do graze the area].

Links

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