Yaban Film Festivali

Natural Areas

Salt Lake

Salt Lake

Located at the intersection of Ankara, Konya and Aksaray, 130 km from Ankara city center, Lake Tuz is the last remnant of an inland sea that broke off from the Tethys Sea that covered Anatolia millions of years ago. It is the largest saltwater lake in Europe and the second largest lake in Türkiye. With its vast and ethereal appearance, Lake Tuz is a very popular place for nature lovers and photographers as well as a very important nesting area for rare bird species. Here, you can see flamingos that settle one of the largest natural breeding colonies in the world. Lake Van Gull, slender-billed gull and some birds of prey also breed here. The lake is also home to the only population of common snipe in Türkiye. Thousands of cranes stay here in the fall and many geese in winter. Also, the steppes around the lake are an important habitat for the endangered great bustards in Central Anatolia.