Views of the salt lake of Larnaca , Cyprus (unfortunately without the flamingoes).

The flamingoes came 10 minutes after I have placed the camera on my backpack and was sitting at the nearby Sunset cafe snack bar . (Murphy's Law) .The salt lake is located just off the road of Larnaca's International Airport it has a total surface area of 2.2 square kilometers. It is one of the most distinctive wetlands of Cyprus and it has been declared a Ramsar site, Natura 2000 site, Special Protected Area under the Barcelona Convention and an Important Bird Area (IBA).Besides its picturesque beauty, the lake is the haunt of 85 species of water-birds with estimated populations between 20,000 and 38,000.Among them are 2,000-12,000 flamingoes (Phoenicopterus roseus) which spend the winter months there feeding off populations of the brine shrimp Artemia salina. Other important bird species are Grus grus, Charadrius alexandrines, Larus ridibundus, Himantopus himantopus, Burhinus oedicnemus, Hoplopterus spinosus, Oenanthe cypriaca and Sylvia melanothorax.Flocks of birdwatchers gather to observe the blaze of pink from flamingoes as they gather in the centre of the lake but also the other important migrants.