Lake Vrana (Dalmatia)

The nature park Vrana ( Vrana Lake ) is a protected area since July 21, 1999 in Croatia. Vrana Lake is the largest lake in Croatia and Dalmatia is located in between the cities of Zadar and Sibenik. The area of the Natural Park is 57 km ², the largest portion of the area, the lake itself ( 30.2 km ²). The freshwater lake extends parallel to the coast and in places is less than a kilometer from the sea. The lake is filled with fresh water karst sinkhole. This nature park with its wetland is an ornithological reserve with a wide variety of species.

Until the second half of the 18th century, the lake covered a much larger area. With the construction of a canal to the sea in the south of the lake, which was completed in 1770, the water level was lowered by approximately three meters and thus drained the sprawling, swampy area in the north especially. The country thus obtained was used by the drawn farmers mainly as pasture.