When: December 2016

Where: Albania

What: The wild side of Albania

 

Everything can happen by chance: one email requesting an image, an idea, a proposal, then a trip.
The project starts in September 2016, after a request of an image of flamingos taken in Camargue. I asked myself: “Why does someone look for a picture taken in France to promote a Natural Area of Albania?” Simply, it was very hard to find images taken there.
The idea came, so I suggest: “We should go there to document that place!”
The idea became a trip, than a second one.

Lagoon of Narta

The Lagoon of Narta (Albanian: Laguna e Nartës) is a lagoon of the Adriatic Sea on the Mediterranean Sea in the central coast of Albania. The lagoon extends north of the Bay of Vlorë on the eastern shore of the Strait of Otranto and is separated from the sea by a narrow littoral strip, consisting of an alluvial dune.

Karaburun and Orikum Lagoon 

The Karaburun Peninsula (Albanian: Gadishulli i Karaburunit) is a peninsula of the Mediterranean Sea located in Southern and Southeastern Europe, which is almost completely surrounded by both the Adriatic Sea to the north and the Ionian Sea to the south. It is located in Southwestern Albania along the Albanian Ionian Sea Coast, whereas the Strait of Otranto separates it from Italy. The Strait of Mezokanal separates the peninsula from Sazan Island, while in the southeast stretches the Bay of Vlorë.

Llogara National Park

The Llogara National Park (Albanian: Parku Kombëtar i Llogarasë) is a national park centered on the Ceraunian Mountains along the Albanian Riviera in Southwestern Albania, spanning an surface area of 1,010 ha (10.1 km2). The park’s terrain includes large alpine meadows, vertical rock faces, precipices and dense forests. The most area of land is covered by forests and was established in 1966 to protect several ecosystems and biodiversity of national importance. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has listed the park as Category II. The region has been recognised as an important Bird and Plant Area, because it support significant numbers of various bird and plant species.

Divjakë-Karavasta National Park

The Divjakë-Karavasta National Park (Albanian: Parku Kombëtar Divjakë-Karavasta) is a national park in western Albania, sprawling across the Myzeqe Plain in the direct proximity to the Adriatic Sea. The park spans a territory of 222.3 square kilometres (22,230 ha) containing remarkable features such as wetlands, salt marshes, coastal meadows, floodplains, woodlands, reed beds, forests and estuaries. The particular climate has favored the development of a vast array of floral and faunal species with an immense quality. In terms of biogeography, it falls entirely within the Illyrian deciduous forests terrestrial ecoregion of the Palearctic Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub. The wealth of fauna is reflected in the list of many species and subspecies recorded to date, with 228 species of birds, 25 species of mammals, 29 species of reptiles and 29 species of amphibia. The park is mostly notable for featuring 5% of the world population of the globally endangered and extremely rare dalmatian pelican.