The annual autumnal bird migration in Lithuania is one of the most spectacular phenomena in the natural world
Lithuania, one of the European Baltic states, is located on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea.
It is bordered by Sweden, Denmark,Latvia, Belarus and Poland.
Each fall, millions of birds leave their breeding grounds in the Northern Hemisphere to winter in the Western and Southern Europe, Africa and Asia.
The Baltic Flyway, from Scandinavia and Northern Russia through the Baltic states, is a most important bird migration routes.
Lithuania provides a bottleneck of the flyway and, as such, offers one of the best countries to view this spectacle.
The autumnal migration actually begins in June, when baby crows, after growing a bit stronger, begin taking off to the South or the West.
Waders, terns, gulls and raptors then follow in the coming months.
The full-on migration begins in September and ends in late October, when millions of birds fly over the Lithuanian skies. Three spots in Lithuania to make the most out of the autumnal migration
Curonian Spit National Park
The Curonian Spit National Park, known for its prehistoric sand-dunes, is also an excellent spot for birdwatching.
The UNESCO-listed peninsula, located between the Baltic Sea and the Curonian lagoon, offers six different observation towers with accompanying information stands to see the flocks of birds flying across the area.
In the Nagliai Strict Nature Reserve, visitors can observe such rare bird species as peregrine and red-legged falcons, brown kites or pink starlings.
The national park also has its own ringing station. Every autumn, nets are set up at the Juodkrantė Ringing Station to catch and ring over 10 thousand birds: great and blue tits, finches, robins and others.
Ventė Cape
Ventė Cape is located in the Nemunas River Delta, a headland that sees half a million of birds passing each day during the peak migratory season in September and October.
Ventė Cape is home to one of the oldest bird ringing stations in Europe, opened in 1929 by the Lithuanian zoologist and biologist Tadas Ivanauskas.
The Ventė Cape area also includes a polder museum and a 100-year-old lighthouse there is the chance to take a boat ride in the nearby Minija River and explore the Minija village, also known as the Lithuanian Venic
Lake Žuvinas
Lake Žuvintas is in the Žuvintas Biosphere Reserve and, with the average depth of only 0.6 m, the lake is the shallowest one in the country and attracts water birds and birdwatchers.
Žuvintas is home to over 240 different bird species, the majority of whom are classified as endangered.
Groups of migratory predators such as marsh and hen harriers, buzzards, hawks and lesser spotted eagles spend their days hunting around in the field and the largest predatory birds in Lithuania—white-tailed sea eagles—zigzag over the lake.
Flocks of migrating geese, cranes, ducks, lapwings and others stop for a rest or breed. Birding Lithuania
Birding Lithuania offers guiding birdwatching tours in Lithuania with the assistance of a network of local guides.