You can find majestic European bison, wild boar and long-legged elk in many of Poland’s unique natural sites, of which there is an abundance. Our forests take up almost 30% of the country’s area. We have 23 national and 125 landscape parks. Then there are meadows, marshes, bodies of water and other ecosystems with many species of different wild animals.
Woodlands, marshes and their animals
The best time to track wild animals in Poland is winter and autumn – a time of spectacular mating rituals: the deer and elk rutting season. But even in July or August, you might see an elk in a meadow somewhere, or a bison in a forest clearing around the town of Hajnówka.
If watching wildlife is your thing, you simply must visit Białowieża Forest, the last patch of primeval forest on the European Plain. Alongside almost a thousand bison living in the wild, the Polish part of the forest boasts the „oak” tourist route – a trail marked among oak trees that are hundreds of years old and are named after Polish and Lithuanian princes and kings who once hunted in this forest.
Fans of big cats should visit Kampinos Forest, home to the lynx. Of course, catching a glimpse of this predatory cat will be quite a challenge, but it is worth a try, especially since the Kampinos National Park’s habitats have a lot to offer nature and wildlife enthusiasts.
Birdwatcher’s paradise
Poland is also where the migration routes of many birds cross. You can find European rollers in fallow fields, ruffs in stubble, cranes in wetlands known locally as spleja (bogs with a living skin of vegetation), and various species of eagles over meadows. Birdwatchers will find a paradise in the Ujście Warty National Park, the Biebrza Marshes, Lake Oświn in Masuria, and the Milicz Ponds in the Barycz River valley.
Be sure to visit Central Europe’s biggest wetlands: the Biebrza Marshes. With a little luck, you might come upon a short-eared owl, snipes, curlews, cranes, black grouse, terns… Almost 300 species of water and marsh birds live here, also some that are rare, having chosen Poland’s largest national park as their breeding ground.
Take note of smaller creatures
Encounters with lower-order animals can be just as fascinating. The Pieniny Mountains are the territory of Poland’s loveliest butterfly: the Apollo. You might see an olive-green Aesculapian snake in the San River valley in the Bieszczady Mountains, or be able to spot versicoloured moor frogs in Kampinos Forest. The males are blue, the females orange.
Bison
Elk
Wolf
Eagle owl
Boar
Lynx
Storks
Stork
Storks
Versicoloured moor frogs
Nature in Poland is unique
Poland is famous for its successful reintroduction experiments. Besides the European bison, animals like the konik (Polish primitive horse), beavers and lynx have been returned to the wild here.
Nature in Poland is largely natural, wild and pristine. Environmental protection measures were already launched by Boleslaus the Brave, who introduced a beaver trapping quota. Casimir the Great and Ladislaus Jagiełło banned the cutting down of trees (so long ago!). Thanks to them, we can still admire Bartek the oak and its brothers. In 1868 the parliament in Poland was the first in the world to pass a law protecting chamois and marmots.
A rich natural heritage is a strong asset in Poland’s attractiveness as a tourist destination. A great variety of natural habitats make us a European leader in terms of maintaining biodiversity. Sea, mountains, clean lakes, numerous rivers, green lowlands, forests, wild animals and abundant flora – you will find it all in Poland!
