Kalochori Lagoon, a key wetland west of Thessaloniki, is experiencing severe water shrinkage. Climatic conditions have caused extensive areas to be exposed along the water’s edge.

ERT reported that the landscape of the lagoon has turned into a vast steppe, due to the arid winter and the high temperatures of the summer

The Kalochori lagoon, just 8 kilometers from Thessaloniki, is a coastal wetland, a biodiversity gem, essentially the northern gateway to the Axios Delta National Park. Unfortunately, it was not exempt from the effects of drought and high temperatures. Everyone hopes that the picture will change in the autumn period and the lagoon will be filled with water.

Despite the receding waters, populations of many species of birds, as well as rabbits, find refuge in the area. ERT’s camera “captured” on camera unique species of birdlife such as young palm fronds commonly known as flamingos that forage in the shallow waters of the lagoon.

In the waters of Thermaikos at the entrance of the Kalochori lagoon, the ERT camera also met white herons, while flamingos are expected to return from their breeding countries in the next period.

The Kalochori lagoon was gradually created in the mid-1960s as a result of land subsidence caused by the over-pumping of water from underground aquifers combined with the loose composition of the soil. The area is often visited by young and old alike, as they have the opportunity to explore a wetland that is a stone’s throw from the urban landscape.