The largest nature park in Central Croatia is Lonjsko polje, located in the valley of the river Sava, east of Zagreb. Covering an area of 506 km2, it is one of the largest European preserved wetlands, protected by the Ramsar Convention as a wetland area of the world importance. The park provides an atmosphere of peace and tranquillity typical of wide wetland expanses. Growing alongside calm waters covered in water lilies are iconic oak forests, particularly beautiful at dusk. However, by far the greatest wealth of Lonjsko polje is in its 250 bird species. These include numerous small birds and different types of duck. The best known inhabitants of the park are storks, which habitually build their nests on the roofs of the lovely timber built village houses. One such village is Čigoć, in 1994 declared to be the first European Village of Storks. Needless to say, the waters of Lonjsko polje attract other creatures such as snakes but we should point out that there are fewer poisonous snakes here than in the rocky south of Croatia.