Birdwatching in Ria Formosa

Ria Formosa Natural Park is one of Portugal’s most important protected wetlands and one of the 7 Wonders of Portugal.
This Natural Reserve of special protection covers an area of 14.000 hectares protected by a complex web of sand barriers and dunes that extends for 60 kilometers along the coast and host on a regular basis more than 20,000 waterbirds, especially during wintertime.
This is a crucial spot for migrant birds from or to Africa.
More than 200 species of birds can be seen in a day on diverse habitats such as dunes, open water, inter-tidal mudflats, salt marshes, salt pans, reed beds, lagoons and pine woods. Particularly rich in wader species and passerines, this is a great place to see rare and localized species that cannot be found anywhere else in Portugal, like Purple Swamp-hen and Little Bittern.

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