The Sava Floodplains: Croatia's Secret Paradise

Every year, in the middle of Croatia, it's the same story: after the annual snowmelt, a huge flood wave spills out of the Alps toward Zagreb and Belgrade. This leads to an increase in the River Sava's water levels of some ten meters. The contents of more than ten billion bathtubs floods an area the size of Lake Constance, often for months on end, yet still the Croatian and Serbian capital is spared a flood disaster. One of the reasons for this is the fact that the Sava is able to flow unhindered. The annual floods not only create a natural retention reservoir for flood control: alongside the Sava lies a natural paradise, unique in Central Europe. In the species-rich, alluvial flood forests of the last major meadow landscapes of the continent, enormous predatory fish like the catfish lie in wait for prey.