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	Danube Delta World Cultural and Natural Heritage. Habitat with the largest biodiversity, natural heritage and UNESCO protected area.
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Fauna | Birds | Mammals | Fishes

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Related articles: Danube Delta Bird Species, Danube Delta Mammal Species, Danube Delta Fish Species

The Danube Delta - A genuine fauna paradise

The Danube Delta is a genuine fauna paradise. 98% of the aquatic European fauna lives here; the entire Odonate, aquatic Lepidoptera, gastropods shellfish fauna live here, as well as rare mammals, who take refuge here; these are Mustela lutreola, Lutra lutra and Felis silvestris, vertebrates who, by their presence here make the fauna of the Delta conspicuous.

Amphibians are represented by two species of caudates and six species of salientia, and the reptiles are represented by 8 species, most of them snakes (4 species).

Fishes are represented by 136 species, most of them are fresh water fishes (60%), and the others migrate from the Black Sea in spring. Among the latter, sturgeons and mackerels play an important part both scientifically and economically.

Birds colonies

A series of aquatic species gather during egg laying, forming colonies, which are, and nest agglomerations covering small areas. The reasons for their gathering up is both the scarcity of the nest building areas and the advantages provided by the presence of a great number of birds protecting the eggs or the nestling.

Bird colonies have always been a great attraction of the Delta. The thousands of nests made up of branches of the willows in riverside coppices or in reed plots, the infernal noise, the atmosphere specific to other geological periods, the shooting flight of birds feeding their nestling, turn the bird colonies into a paradise for both ornithologists and for many nature fans.

There are several types of colonies in the Danube Delta: herons, rowers, pelicans, cormorants, common terns, crested larks, and terns.

The pelican colony from the entirely preserved area Rosca-Buhaiova is the greatest in Europe, and is an instance of mixed colony. It is the place where thousands of common pelican pairs associates with tens and even hundreds of curly pelicans pairs and of big cormorants, in a landscape reminding of the Jurassic Park. Only specialists authorized by ARBDD are allowed in the colonies.

Danube Delta Bird Species
(325 species)

In the Danube Delta mammals live in the higher areas that cannot be reached by waters. Otters, minks, foxes, polecats, hares are to be found along with tortoises especially on the islands of Lake Razim.

Danube Delta Mammal Species
(43 species)

According to their geographical origin, the delta birds contain the following types: Arctic species, Siberian, European, Mediterranean, Mongolian and Chinese.

Danube Delta Fish Species
(136 species)

Over a surface of 20-25 sq. km, the Danube Delta is formed of hundreds of lakes, streams, channels sheltering some 136 species of fish.

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