Gialova Lagoon is the best birdwatching site in the Peloponnese as it is home to up to 20,000 assorted waterbirds from 270 migratory species, many of them rare. The birds pause here on their spring migration between Africa and Eastern Europe between September and March. The lagoon and associated wetlands cover 700 hectares at the northern end of Navarino Bay. The wetlands and the surrounding coastal habitats were declared a protected area in 1997. An old pump house, former nerve center of an old drainage scheme, has been converted to an information center that is a great starting point for two walking trails that take visitors through a range of habitats.