The Natural reserve
of Srebarna

(Bulgarian: Природен резерват Сребърна, Priroden rezervat Srebarna) is a nature reserve in the Southern Dobruja area of northeastern Bulgaria. The nature reserve is about eighteen miles west of the town of Silistra and two kilometers south of the River Danube. The nature reserve consists of the lake Srebarna and the environment of the lake. The nature reserve covers an area of 6 square kilometers and around it is a buffer zone of 5.4 km ². There is a visitor center / museum in the nature reserve which includes a number of stuffed animals, which live in the nature reserve.

History
In the past the lake and surrounding area was studied by mainly foreign biologists. The first Bulgarian scientist, who was particularly interested in the birdlife in the area was Aleksi Petrov, who visited the area in 1911. In 1913, Southern Dobruja was annexed to Romania. In 1940 the area went back to Bulgaria. Afterwards the area was once more visited by Petrov in order to study the bird colonies. The area is a nature reserve since 1948 and since 1975 a Ramsar area. Since 1983, the area is as a World Natural Heritage on the List of UNESCO.

Flora and Fauna
There grow 139 different plant species in the reserve. Of these, eleven species of plants are threatened with  extinction outside the reserve. [
There live 39 different mammals, 21 different reptiles and amphibians and about 12 different species of fish within the reserve.
The nature reserve is best known for the different species of birds in the area. There are about 100 different species of breeding birds in the area: including the only colony Dalmatian Pelicans (Pelecanus crispus)  of Bulgaria. Migratory birds often use the area as a resting place

Activities