Durbe Lake Birdwatching Tower
Getting there: The route is located 187 km from Riga and 24 km from Liepāja. To reach the birdwatching tower near the Durbe River, turn off the A9 highway towards Aistere and drive 2 km to Lake Durbe. To reach the second site, at Durbe Hillfort, turn onto a small gravel road towards Lake Durbe.
Parking: Cars can be conveniently parked in both parking lots near Lake Durbe.
Distance and time: None.
Special instructions: At both sites there are information stands about Lake Durbe and the fish species found there.
Signage and amenities: Amenities are located near the birdwatching tower.
Public transport:
Riga – Durbe: 06:45 (via Jelgava/4 hours); 11:05 (Mon-Sun); 11:45 (Mon-Sat); 12:40; 13:55; 14:55; 15:25 (Mon-Sun); 16:35 (Mon-Fri); 18:00; 19:40; 20:30 (Mon-Sun).
Durbe – Riga: 06:00 (Mon-Fri); 08:55 (Mon-Sat); 10:20; 12:45; 13:25; 14:47; 16:49; 18:49; 20:09 (Mon-Sun). Travel time 3.2 hours.
Liepāja – Durbe: 05:10; 05:40 (Mon-Fri); 06:00; 06:25; 08:05; 08:35; 10:00; 12:25; 12:40 (Mon-Sun); 13:05 (Mon-Fri, Sun); 14:20; 14:45; 16:25; 18:25; 19:45 (Mon-Sun).
Durbe – Liepāja: 09:12 (Mon-Sat); 10:57; 12:51; 14:23 (Mon-Sun); 15:05 (Mon-Sat); 15:58; 17:15; 18:15; 19:13; 10:45; 21:08 (Mon-Sun); 21:15 (Mon-Sat); 23:00; 23:15 (Mon-Sun). Travel time 30 minutes.
Nearest routes: “Durbe”, “Līguti Park”, “Aistere Fields”.
Season: Suitable birdwatching sites all year round (if the lake does not freeze). A good place for waterbird observation throughout the year. In spring, in April–May, a significant number of various diurnal birds of prey migrate over – buzzards, kites, falcons, etc.
In total, 138 bird species have been observed along the route.
The Durbe Lake birdwatching tower was built in 2018. It is possible to observe birds inhabiting the western and southern shores of the lake and the reedbeds – great bittern, Savi's warbler, black tern, great white egret, great crested grebe, mallard, and other waterbirds. During migration, several hundred goldeneyes, ducks, and geese may gather on the lake. Around the tower, white wagtail, long-tailed tit, reed warbler, and marsh warbler nest.
The second site is at the southern end of the lake. Here, a small parking area has been built, which can also be conveniently used for birdwatching. The species composition is similar to that from the birdwatching tower, but more farmland bird species are found here because of the nearby floodplain meadows. It is a good place for observing birds of prey during spring migration. It is possible to observe the great grey shrike, Eurasian hobby, marsh warbler, sedge warbler, sand martin, corncrake, and red-backed shrike.
Bird List of Dienvidkurzeme_for print
White-tailed Eagle
The largest Latvian bird of prey – it is about the size of a stork. It has long, straight and broad wings with flight feathers spreading in a finger-like fashion. Its head prominently protrudes forward and has a very large bill. The tail is wedge-shaped. From the age of 5, the bird has a white tail, which contrasts in colour with dark brown flight feathers.
They often hunt while soaring over water. The bird mainly feeds on waterfowl (ranging in size from the size of a coot to that of a crane), fish and carrion. They like to squat on various elevations (stumps, etc.) or on the ground (in winter – on ice).
They start breeding at the age of 5–6. Their nest is a massive structure made of coarse branches, usually built on the top of a very old tree. Non-migratory species, but young birds roam in winter.
(Latvijas ūdeņu putni. Rīga: LOB, 1999. (Birds of Latvian waters. Riga: Latvian Ornithological Society, 1999)
The bird is slightly smaller than the grey heron, stubby, with distinctive yellow-brown mottled camouflage plumage. Adult birds have a black-brown top of the head and a beard stripe. The lekking “song” of a male is very distinctive – it is a hollow sound that is well heard from a distance; it sounds like the wind being blown into a large empty bottle. They are mainly vocally active at dusk and at night. Habitat – shallow, reed-covered water bodies of various sizes: lakes, fish ponds, and on rare occasions – beaver ponds in forests.
The birds mostly forage during the day and sometimes outside the reedbeds. They either walk slowly or wait at a standstill and then catch their prey with lightning-speed movement. The main prey of the bird are fish, frogs, insects (dragonflies), and small mammals. The female bird builds its nest of reeds and reed leaves on the ground, well hidden in thick reeds.
A migratory bird with wintering grounds in southwestern Europe. Some individuals also winter near ice-free waters in Latvia.
(Latvijas ūdeņu putni. Rīga: LOB, 1999. (Birds of Latvian waters. Riga: Latvian Ornithological Society, 1999))
Eurasian Penduline Tit
It is much smaller than the great tit. The head and throat of the bird are light coloured – greyish white, with a broad black band running from the forehead over the eye to the ear. The back and shoulders are chestnut-brown, the ventral side tawny, and the breast reddish-brown with dark brown spots. Habitat – mostly swampy shores of lakes, ponds and river banks; overgrown with birches, willows and reeds.
They feed on small insects, spiders, aquatic invertebrates, and plant seeds. In the post-breeding period, it most often occurs in reedbeds, where separate individuals or flocks tend to forage on seeds in reed heads. The male birds build a characteristic closed nest with an entrance tube from the seed fluff of willows, poplars, cattails, and other plants. The nest is attached to the end of a flexible branch of birch or willow, usually over water or a swamp.
Winters in central and southern Europe; also found in small numbers in Latvia and elsewhere in eastern Europe.
(Latvijas ūdeņu putni. Rīga: LOB, 1999. (Birds of Latvian waters. Riga: Latvian Ornithological Society, 1999))
Black Tern
A bird the size of a common blackbird, with slender wings, a shallowly forked tail and short legs. Adult birds have black plumage in summer, with a lead grey upper surface of the wings and back, a light grey tail and a light underwing (axillae). In autumn, they become similar in appearance to young birds – with a white belly, grey back and upper surface of the wings, lighter grey colour of the upper surface of the tail, black colour on the back and sides of the head, white forehead, and a dark area on the sides of the body at the base of the wings.
Habitat – shallow, sometimes even very small lakes and ponds with floating and emergent aquatic vegetation. More at sea, when migrating. They like to squat on various stalks, reed rhizomes and similar objects above the water.
Having a jerky flight pattern, the bird often flutters on the spot, low over the water or over aquatic vegetation. Food is picked up from the water’s surface while flying. Feeds on insects and small fish.
Breeds in colonies, most often on floating rhizomes of aquatic plants. A migratory bird that winters in Equatorial Africa.
(Latvijas ūdeņu putni. Rīga: LOB, 1999. (Birds of Latvian waters. Riga: Latvian Ornithological Society, 1999))