Lake Ormož ( Slovene and Croatian: ''Ormoško jezero'') is a

reservoir A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation. Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including contro ...

on the

Drava River The Drava or Drave''Utrata Fachwörterbuch ...

in north-eastern

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...

and north-western

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

, forming a part of the

border Borders are usually defined as geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other subnational entities. Political borders c ...

between the two countries. It was named after the nearby Slovenian town of

Ormož Ormož (; in older sources , hu, Ormosd, german: Friedau, Prekmurje Slovene: ''Ormošd'') is a town in the traditional region of Prlekija, part of Styria, in northeastern Slovenia. It lies on the left bank of the Drava River and borders with Cro ...

on the left bank of the Drava River, just next to its northern end, and has an area of approximately 3 km². The reservoir was constructed in 1975, when both Slovenia and Croatia were part of

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...

, to serve the

Varaždin Hydroelectric Power Plant Varaždin Hydroelectric Power Plant is a hydroelectric power plant on river Drava, near the city of Varaždin located in Varaždin County, in the northwest part of Croatia. The Varaždin Hydroelectric Power Plant is a multipurpose hydroelectric pla ...

. The dam and the power plant are on the Croatian side of the border and represent the southern end of Lake Ormož. The border follows the natural course of the Drava River as it appeared before the construction of the reservoir. On the Slovenian side of the border, six

retention basin A retention basin, sometimes called a wet pond, wet detention basin, or stormwater management pond (SWMP), is an artificial pond with vegetation around the perimeter and a permanent pool of water in its design. It is used to manage stormwater r ...

s were built near the left bank of Lake Ormož in 1980 to manage wastewater from a now defunct sugar factory in Ormož. In 1992, the

Municipality of Ormož The Municipality of Ormož (; sl, Občina Ormož) is a municipality in the traditional region of Styria in northeastern Slovenia. The seat of the municipality is the town of Ormož. Ormož became a municipality in 1994. Geography The municipali ...

protected the Slovenian part of Lake Ormož and the area along its left bank as a

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

due to its importance as a

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

for birds. After the sugar factory was closed, the six retention basins became a

marsh A marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous rather than woody plant species.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p Marshes can often be found at ...

in a matter of years, eventually being protected as a nature reserve on a national level in 2017. As many as 261 different bird species were spotted around Lake Ormož, with the nature reserve also attracting some rare species of

migratory birds Bird migration is the regular seasonal movement, often north and south along a flyway, between breeding and wintering grounds. Many species of bird migrate. Migration carries high costs in predation and mortality, including from hunting by ...

References

External links

Drava basin

Croatia–Slovenia border Bird sanctuaries {{Slovenia-geo-stub