Dilek Peninsula-Büyük Menderes Delta National Park

Coordinates: 37°40′08.14″N 27°09′42.32″E / 37.6689278°N 27.1617556°E / 37.6689278; 27.1617556
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Dilek Peninsula-Büyük Menderes Delta National Park
Dilek Yarımadası-Büyük Menderes Deltası Millî Parkı
Ministry of Forest and Water Management
Websitedilekyarimadasi.gov.tr

Dilek Peninsula-Büyük Menderes Delta National Park (

Dilek Peninsula as well as the large delta of the Büyük Menderes River. The park is located in the Kuşadası district of Aydın Province — part of Turkey's Aegean Region. Directly west of the national park is the small coastal town of Güzelçamlı, where several shuttle buses and ferries operate to and from the district's center of Kuşadası, approximately 30 km (19 mi) from the park.[1][2]

The park is among the most

mammals, plants, and marine life, some of which are entirely endemic to the park and cannot be observed anywhere else in the world.[3] For these reasons, it is protected by numerous wildlife and wetland conventions, and is of great national and international importance in these areas.[4]

It is separated from the Greek island of

Mount Mycale, the highest and most prominent mountain of the peninsula, and is one of the narrowest straits in the Aegean Sea.[5]

History

A view of the park

For most of the area's existence, the lands from the Dilek Peninsula southwards to the end of the

Büyük Menderes river delta adjacent to the peninsula in the south was also promoted to national park status.[1][7][8]

Events

In early 2005, a severely wounded Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus monachus) was found within the Büyük Menderes Delta. It was treated immediately, but due to complications died shortly afterwards. The Mediterranean monk seal is critically endangered, with only about 600 remaining in the world, and over 100 of which are within the maritime borders of Turkey.[9]

Controversy surrounded the park in April 2010 after the chairman of the Aydın Beekeepers Association, Kadir Kılıç, claimed that

bees for pollination.[10]

Geography

A full map of the national park including the names of ancient cities

The national park is 27,598 ha (68,200 acres) in total land area, with the peninsula itself having an area of about 110 km2 (42 sq mi), with a width of around 6 km (3.7 mi) from north to south and a length of 20 km (12 mi) east to west.[11][12] It is located approximately 8 km (5.0 mi) from Davutlar,[11] about 26 km (16 mi) from the district's seat of Kuşadası (estimates range from 23-30 kilometres),[13] and is directly adjacent to the town of Güzelçamlı.[14] Other nearby cities in Aydın Province have access roads to the park, including Aydın, Söke and, to a lesser extent, Didim.[7]

The Mycale Strait separates the peninsula from the nearby island of Samos. Named after Mount Mycale, the strait is only about 1.6 km (0.99 mi) wide at its narrowest point, making it one of the Aegean Sea's smallest straits.[5]

Popular features

A view of the park with Mycale in the background

The mountainous terrain of the peninsula and its numerous

Hellenistic port city of Karine. However, this path's final 9 km (5.6 mi) are limited in access, and a permit or an accompanying tour guide is required to proceed. The third cove along the peninsula, Kavaklı Burun Cove, and the final, westernmost cove accessible to the public, Karasu Cove, both provide close views of the island of Samos, and are significantly less visited than the former coves of the peninsula. At the very end of the peninsula appears its tallest mountain, Mycale (Turkish: Dilek Dağı), which looms over Samos and the strait of its namesake.[13][17][18]

Cave of Zeus

A view of the Cave of Zeus near the entrance

Immediately upon entry into the national park, a fork in the main path begins a trail running through the inner peninsula leading to a local cavern known as the Cave of Zeus (Turkish: Zeus Mağarası). The entrance is dense in vegetation, covering parts of it. There is also a wishing tree to which people usually tie objects and belongings, hoping for their wishes to be granted. The Cave of Zeus is filled with clear subterranean spring water, making it another common tourist attraction near the national park. Visits to the cave typically increase as the waters of the nearby beaches become rougher, thereby making them less inviting. The cave's name invokes the many legends that concern the cave and its origins, including one holding that Zeus bathed in the cave.[19][20]

Büyük Menderes Delta

The wide mouth of the Büyük Menderes River (English: Great Meander) empties at the Aegean Sea, with an area of 16,613 ha (41,050 acres); larger than the entire Dilek Peninsula directly to the north, at only 10,985 ha (27,140 acres).

picnicking.[22]

A view of a boat and one of the peninsula's smaller coves seen from a path facing west

Climate

Dilek Peninsula-Büyük Menderes Delta National Park has a

plants live at higher altitudes than those at ground level, and the same is true when comparing the southern face of the peninsula and areas of the river delta with those to the north.[23][24]

Geology

Mount Mycale

The terrain of the peninsula has much to do with the

plate boundary, which generates massifs of mountains all across western Turkey.[26] This includes the peninsula and the mountains surrounding the Büyük Menderes River, known collectively as the Menderes Massif.[27][28]

The peninsula is highly mountainous, with most of its mountains having elevations close to 1,200 m (3,900 ft) above mean sea level. Its highest mountain, Mount Mycale, is approximately 1,237 m (4,058 ft) high.[24]

Biology

Dilek Peninsula Coves

The national park is quite diverse in its wildlife and vegetation, hosting approximately 804 distinct species of plants, 256 bird species, and an otherwise considerable variety of mammals, reptiles, and marine life. The entirety of the national park, including both Dilek Peninsula National Park and Büyük Menderes Delta National Park, is currently protected under the Ramsar Convention, the Berne Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats, the Rio Convention on Biological Diversity, and the Barcelona Convention.[3][4]

Flora

The park has a large diversity of vegetation. Due to the temperature and climate differences between different areas and elevations of the park, not only is the typical Aegean flora present, but also many specimens normally only found in separate coastal areas of Turkey, such as in the Mediterranean, Marmara, and Black Sea regions.[7]

Out of the 804 species of flora distributed throughout the park, six are

Turkish pine (Pinus brutia), and elm-leaved sumach (Rhus coriaria).[3][17]

A tree viewed from within the forest

Fauna

In total, 28 species of mammals, 42 species of reptiles, and 45 fish species have been documented within the park.[3] Several

caracals (Caracal caracal), among many others usually not native to such areas.[3]

Along the southern shores of the peninsula, and within the river delta, exists a range of bird and marine life. Many of these species are endangered, which was one of the primary factors considered when placing the delta under national protection. Some of the more common bird species observed here include pygmy cormorants (Microcarbo pygmeus), little egrets (Egretta garzetta), lesser kestrels (Falco naumanni), Kentish plovers (Charadrius alexandrinus), white-tailed eagles (Haliaeetus albicilla), and the Dalmatian pelicans (Pelecanus crispus), for which the park is a key nesting place. Marine life consists of species typical of the Aegean Sea, as well as some species usually found elsewhere.[3][7]

The biodiversity of local oceanic fauna is not well understood. Sea turtles and mammals, including monk seals, fin whales (only 1 sighting and 5 strandings have been documented in Turkish waters),[29][30] and dolphins are considered to reside in the park area, although regularity of occurrences are unclear.[3][31][32]

Activities

A small cove along the northern shore of the peninsula

Nature photography is a common activity in the park due to the large variety of flora and fauna, as well as landscape photography due to the mountainous terrain and views. There are several forest trails and high-elevation ventures used by hikers and mountaineers respectively. There are numerous other activities available for visitors, as well as some prohibited activities. For example, although recreational fishing is allowed, there are severe consequences for anyone found hunting within the jurisdiction of the park.[7][17][33]

Tourism

The park is the most visited during the spring and summer months, when it is open between 8:00 and 19:00 (7:00 pm) local time. In autumn and winter, it closes at 17:00 (5:00 pm). Admission must be paid at the entrance. Camping, lighting fires, or setting up overnight shelters are strictly forbidden within the limits of the national park in order to protect the surrounding ecosystem.

ferry boat services operating back and forth between Kuşadası and Güzelçamlı, in turn providing easier access to the park for visitors. Each year, around 700,000 foreign and domestic tourists visit the park.[4][11][17]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Dilek Yarımadası - Büyük Menderes Deltası Milli Parkı". Doğa Koruma ve Milli Parklar Genel Müdürlüğü (in Turkish). Archived from the original on 10 July 2015. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  2. ^ "Kuşadası-Güzelçamlı arası feribot seferleri başladı". Radikal (in Turkish). 2015-06-03. Retrieved 2015-07-09.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Milli Park". Ekodosd (in Turkish). Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  4. ^ a b c "Dilek Yarımadası Milli Parkı". T.C Kuşadası Kaymakamlığı (in Turkish). Archived from the original on 10 July 2015. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  5. ^ a b "General Information". Samos Island. Retrieved 10 July 2015.
  6. ^ "Mycale (479 BCE)". Livius. Retrieved 10 July 2015.
  7. ^ a b c d e f "Dilek Peninsula (Kusadasi) National Park". National Parks of Turkey. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  8. ^ "History of Kusadasi". Kusadasi.net. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  9. ^ "Seals return to Kuşadası after 45-year-absence". Hürriyet Daily News. 2005-02-26. Retrieved 2015-07-09.
  10. ^ "Turkish beekepers to be kept out of national park". Hürriyet Daily News. 2010-04-29. Archived from the original on 2015-07-10. Retrieved 2015-07-09.
  11. ^ a b c "Dilek Peninsula National Park, Guzelcamli – Kusadasi". Kusadasi.biz. Archived from the original on 19 March 2015. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  12. ^ a b "Dilek Peninsula National Park". Turkey from the Inside. Archived from the original on 10 July 2015. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  13. ^ a b c "Introducing Dilek Peninsula". Lonely Planet. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  14. ^ "Dilek Peninsula National Park Kusadasi". Travel Selcuk. Archived from the original on 8 July 2015. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  15. ^ "Discover Dilek National Park". Didim Voices. Archived from the original on 10 January 2017. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  16. ^ "Dilek Peninsula National Park". Alaturka.info. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  17. ^ a b c d e "Dilek National Park". Jimmy's Place. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  18. ^ "8 Top-Rated Tourist Attractions in Kusadasi". PlanetWare. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  19. ^ "Cave of Zeus". Daily Ephesus Tours. Archived from the original on 10 July 2015. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  20. ^ "Cave of Zeus Kusadasi". Very Turkey. Retrieved 10 July 2015.
  21. ^ "Dilek Peninsula - Delta of Great Menderes National Park". Go Turkey Tourism. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  22. ^ Seal, Jeremy (2013-03-22). "Turkey: exploring the ancient Meander river delta". The Guardian. Retrieved 10 July 2015.
  23. ^ "Southeastern Europe: Along the coastline of Greece and Turkey, stretching into Macedonia". World Wildlife Fund. Retrieved 10 July 2015.
  24. ^ a b c Efe, Recep. "A Comparative Study on the Biogeography of Protected and Degraded Habitats in Dilek Peninsula - Turkey" (PDF). academia.edu. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  25. ^ "Dilek Yarımadası-Büyük Menderes Deltası Milli Parkı". Kuşadası Belediyesi (in Turkish). Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  26. ^ "Turkey - Geology". U.S. Library of Congress. Retrieved 10 July 2015.
  27. ^ Douwe J.J. van Hinsbergen (11 November 2009). "A key extensional metamorphic complex reviewed and restored: The Menderes Massif of western Turkey" (PDF). Universiteit Utrecht. Retrieved 17 July 2015.
  28. ^ "Geology of the Menderes Massif and the Lycian Nappes South of Denizli, Western Taurides" (PDF). MTA Genel Müdürlüğü. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 22 July 2015.
  29. ^ "Fifth stranding record of the Fin Whale in Turkey". Archived from the original on 2016-03-31. Retrieved 2016-04-15.
  30. .
  31. ^ Alakavuk E., Şengün B., 2009, The Dilek Peninsula: Büyük Menderes Delta, Natural Heritage from East to West, pp.315-319, Case studies from 6 EU countries. Edited by Evelpidou, N., deFigueiredo, T., Mauro, F., Tecim, V., Vassilopoulos, A., 2010, Springer.
  32. ^ Yunus - WWF Turkey
  33. ^ IUCN/UNEP (1989). Directory of Marine and Coastal Protected Areas in the Mediterranean Region (PDF) (Report). MAP Technical Reports Series No. 26. Vol. 1. Athens: UNEP. p. 155–158 [157]. Retrieved 15 March 2016.

External links