Nearest city İpsala, Enez Phone +90 312 207 50 00 | Area 60.9 km² Established March 5, 2005 | |
 | ||
Location Edirne Province, Turkey Governing body Directorate-General of Nature Protection and National Parks
Ministry of Environment and Forest Address Yeni Mahallesi, 22760 Enez/Edirne, Turkey | ||
The Lake Gala National Park (Turkish: Gala Gölü Milli Parkı), established on March 5, 2005, is a national park located within Edirne Province in Marmara Region of Turkey.
The national park covers an area consisting of Lake Pamuklu and Lake Küçük Gala within the boundaries of İpsala and Enez districts. In 1991, 2,369 ha (5,850 acres) of land was declared a nature reserve. In 2002, biologists from Trakya University in Edirne demanded transformation of the protected area into a national park status due to pollution of lakes by pesticide waste and fertilizer used in agriculture, as well as uncontrolled fishing activities and bird poaching that reach a level of massacre. In 2005, the area was enlarged to 6,090 ha (15,000 acres), and it was established as a national park. Lake Gala National Park is an ecosystem of 3,090 ha (7,600 acres) wetland, lake and 3,000 ha (7,400 acres) forest. It is a habitat for various species of animal and plant.
The protected area is administered by the Directorate-General of Nature Protection and National Parks (Turkish: Doğa Koruma ve Milli Parklar Genel Müdürlüğü) of the Ministry of Environment and Forest.
FaunaEdit
The park is quite rich of bird genera. Some 163 bird species are observed in the area, of which 46 are resident, 27 winter migratory and 90 summer migratory birds. Best time to observe most of the bird species all together is between April and May in the spring, and September and October in the fall.
The two lakes are home to 16 fish genera, including European eel (Anguilla anguilla, L.), pike perch (Stizostedion lucioperca L.), common carp (Cyprinus carpio L.) and northern pike (Esox lucius), which are of high economic value.