Fertile Floods: Croatia's Wetlands

Kroatiens Auenland

Every year, in the middle of Croatia, it's the same story: after the annual snowmelt, a huge flood wave spills out of the Alps toward Zagreb and Belgrade. This leads to an increase in the River Sava's water levels of some ten meters. In the species-rich, alluvial flood forests of the last major meadow landscapes of the continent, enormous predatory fish like the catfish lie in wait for prey.