Hortobágy National Park Wildlife Photography

Hortobágy National Park lies in eastern Hungary, within the Great Hungarian Plain, & protects one of Europe's largest remaining areas of natural puszta, a vast expanse of steppe grassland interspersed with marshes, fishponds, & shallow alkaline lakes. Designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its cultural landscape as well as its ecological value, the park represents a rare survival of open, low-intensity grazed habitat in a continent where such landscapes have largely disappeared under agriculture. Its flat, expansive terrain & mosaic of wetland & grassland habitats create ideal conditions for large-scale bird migration & roosting, particularly during the autumn passage.

The park is best known for its spectacular gatherings of Common Cranes, which pass through in impressive numbers during migration & can be observed feeding & roosting across the open plains & wetlands. Birds of prey are a particular highlight, with the White-tailed Eagle & Eastern Imperial Eagle both present as powerful resident or visiting raptors, alongside Common Buzzards & the more northerly Rough-legged Buzzard, which arrives in winter from Arctic breeding grounds. Away from the skies, Red Fox can be encountered moving through the grasslands & scrub margins, an adaptable predator well suited to this open, undisturbed landscape.