I first came across Lake Kerkini in Greece about 8 or 10 years ago when a colleague showed me a picture he had taken there of a pelican catching a fish in its bright red pouch. The pelican had its wings widespread, and the pouch was distended under the open beak with the fish right in the middle. It was a picture that was both dramatic and quite fun. He said that this was one of the only places to photograph Dalmatian pelicans (Pelecanus crispus) in Europe. As a destination, it has been on my to-do list ever since.
A couple of years ago I met another photographer at an event who showed a gorgeous picture from Lake Kerkini with pelicans in the light of dawn. It piqued my interest again and so I asked him about where and how he took it. He pointed me in the direction of Wildlife Worldwide and the tour leader Sean Weekly. I had a Google, found this tour advertised for January 2025 and booked in about 18 months ago.
Sunset on Lake Kerkini: first view on arrival.
The lake itself is a reservoir formed by damming the River Strymon and flooding what had been marshland. The process started in the 1930s and the embankments were raised in the early 80s giving today's huge lake. The lake's surface area is between 54 and 72 km², depending on river flow and the sharing of water between Bulgaria (where the river flows out of) and Greece.
It sits on the migration route for multiple bird species, and has become a residential habitat for Dalmatian pelicans. This is the best site in Europe to see them. Nutrients from the River Strymon help build the local fish population, which supports bird life.
We were told that currently 800-1000 of these birds overwinter; their numbers swell to about 1500 in the breeding season with the arrival of more from Africa. Estimates from Birdlife.org put the worldwide population at 11400-13400 mature individuals, so Lake Kerkini represents a globally significant fraction.
In addition, a few African great white pelicans (Pelecanus onocrotalus) are present too (males are distinguished by their rose pink colour).
About a quarter of a century ago, it was clear that the overwintering birds were not doing well. Among the problems they faced was that, in winter, the fish that they feed on retreat to deeper water that the pelicans cannot reach. Many of the birds were effectively starving and the colony was in danger of collapse.
Conservationists noticed that the pelicans pursued fishermen who harvested the lake's fish and filched as many fish as they could. To make this sustainable, they began buying fish from the local fishermen to feed to the birds. Even though they could not reach all of the birds, the number of fish provided this way seems to have helped stabilise pelican numbers.
In recent years, the birds have been breeding more successfully, especially with the introduction of raised breeding platforms installed in the lake to represent their natural breeding habitats of small islands. We were told that last year around 80 chicks were raised. The pelicans raise one chick per pair per year.
The population on Lake Kerkini still rates as endangered since they are heavily dependent on conservation measures. Moreover, trash and pollution coming out of the River Strymon represents a continuing hazard to all the wildlife on the lake.
About 10 years ago, Sean Weekly began working with the local fishermen and conservationists to set up a workshop for photographing the pelicans. This also meant that the local fishermen get paid for their fish, and that the local hospitality businesses, pretty much dead in winter, get a better income too. Win-win all round.
It was in this context that I spent three days out on the lake with Sean and six other photographers as well as two local guides, Yannis and Babis, on one of the local boats.
The small harbour near Kerkini village where the photo-boat is based
The photo- and feeding-boat. Sean stepping on to the boat. And yes that is the shadow of the photographer and his phone:)
The pelicans — both Dalmatian and Great White — are imposing, massive birds. The Dalmatians are among the largest freshwater birds, similar in size to the largest swans (Wikipedia has a nice discussion of sizes). The way they fly is magnificent, especially when it is combined with evocative light.
I'll try and write another couple of entries in the next few days about the pelicans. I'll also make some comments about some of the techniques for photographing pelicans. A lot of these are very standard for any bird photography, but some were recommended by Sean, building on fundamental general techniques that might be used in any genre of photography.
Hitchhikers! Three Dalmatian pelicans standing on the canopy of our boat. They save energy by not having to fly to keep up with the fish. They are ever-hopeful of being fed on board. It is the dominant and aggressive birds that get the prime perches on the boat.
Dalmatian pelican hitchhiker standing on the prow of our boat.