Rate birdingplace Kouklia Lake
Rated 0 stars out of 5
0
Wetland and migration hotspot with hundreds of bird species. One of the best spots in Cyprus for birding.
Kouklia Lake is a migration hotspot. There is no finer birding location for wetland species in Cyprus. The diversity of birds you can encounter is huge. Among the birds you can see in the area are Чирянка велика, Чернь білоока, Крех середній, Пірникоза чорношия, Зозуля чубата, Погонич звичайний, Погонич малий, Журавель степовий, Ходулoчник, Сивка звичайна, Чайка шпорова, Хрустан євразійський, Брижач, Побережник червоногрудий, Плавунець круглодзьобий, Дерихвіст лучний, Крячок чорнодзьобий, Крячок каспійський, Фламінго, Косар білий and Пелікан рожевий. But many more, see the birdlist below.
Drive to Kouklia village and when you get to the mosque take the turning opposite there is a signed entrance. Follow the central track down to a car park on left with tall viewing tower on right. On the opposite side of the wetland is a water retension barrage with a hide that you can walk to along the top of the barrage. It's a trek worth making.
The Kouklia Lake is a reservoir that forms the temporary shallow lake habitat of Kukla Wetlands, which is no deeper than two meters. The reservoir used to be deeper, however it has been used for agriculture in dry seasons for many years and has silted up in time. It can totally dry during summer, however it can hold water for couple of years once it gets relatively full. At the eastern side of the lake the reservoir wall is fringed by phragmites reeds which can become extensive in wet times. The southeast corner is the deepest part and the wetland gets gradually shallower west and northwards. The reservoir habitat homes the majority of the birds seen at the site.
Visited this place in August 2024, unfotunately, the lake was completely dried up.