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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 Silvie cu cap negru, Vânturel roșu, Vrabie de câmp and Ciocănitoare pestriță mare and birds that are less common and hard to find near urban areas such as Pietrar sur, Mărăcinar mare, Ghionoaie sură, Fâsă de munte, Muscar gulerat, Prigorie (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 Mugurar, Botgros, Cinteză de iarnă, Scatiu, Cânepar and Sticlete, as well as many thrush species like Cocoșar, Sturzul viilor, Mierlă, and Sturz de vâsc. Regular in winter are also Aușel cu cap galben, Aușel sprâncenat, Brumăriță de pădure, Rață mică, Pițigoi de brădet, Ochiuboului, Fâsă de luncă and many others. In winter, all of the water birds come to the ponds. Rață mare can be seen from late autumn to may(can be spotted in flyovers year-round). Rață mică is here from late autumn but leaves before spring begins. Cârstel de baltă and Găinușă de baltă are guaranteed from october to april, but moorhens can stay longer(maybe even present year-round). Fluierar de zăvoi and Fluierar de munte 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 Barză neagră, Barză albă, Mărăcinar mare, Codobatură galbenă, Pupăză, Pitulice mică, Ciocârlie de pădure, Privighetoare roșcată, Rândunică, Drepnea neagră, Codroș de pădure during the early and middle parts of migration, and Prigorie, Sfrâncioc roșiatic, Capîntortură, Presură sură, Grangur, Silvie mică, Silvie de câmp Prepeliță and Ciuș 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 Drepnea mare, Șoimul rândunelelor and Lăstun de mal. Gaie neagră, Stârc de noapte, Cuc, Egretă mică, Silvie de zăvoi 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 Fâsă de pădure, Pitulice sfârâitoare, Sfrâncioc roșiatic , Privighetoare roșcată and Muscar sur in great numbers, but you can also find Muscar negru and Pitulice fluierătoare, Viespar is a common flyover here, and even Privighetoare de zăvoi (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 Ciuf de pădure and Cucuvea you should search the streets and roofs and backyards of houses. If you want to see Ghionoaie verde and Grangur, 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 Aușel cu cap galben, Mugurar, Cucuvea, Ciuș, Pițigoi de brădet, Grangur, Codroș de pădure 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 Erete sur, Uliu porumbar Șoim călător, Drepnea palidă, Privighetoare de zăvoi, Erete alb, Uligan pescar, Presură cu cap negru, Frunzăriță galbenă Lăcar de stuf, Lăcar mare, Lăcar de mlaștină, Gaie roșie, Uligan pescar 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 Coțofană, Cioară de semănătură, Cioară grivă and occasional Uliu păsărar or Vânturel roșu. 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