he Pannonian Region is dominated by a large flat alluvial basin that is transected from north to south by two major rivers – the Danube and Tisza. Once an ancient inland sea, the basin is almost completely enclosed on all sides by low-lying hills and mountains. To the north and east lie the Carpathians, to the west the Alps and, to the south, the Dinarics.

The sheltered position of the region beneath the mountains has had a significant impact on biodiversity here. It has also influenced the climate. Wet weather coming in from the west is tempered by drier warmer winds rising up from the Mediterranean and cooler temperatures coming from the Carpathians and Alps nearby. As a result of these complex weather patterns, the Pannonian Region exhibits a mosaic vegetation structure instead of the more classic zonal arrangements that one sees in other biogeographical regions. The conflicting climatic influences also account for the dramatic
thunderstorms that sometimes build up over the plains at various times of the year.

With such a wealth of diverse and contrasting habitats, it is no surprise that the Pannonian Region has a particularly high level of species diversity, with many endemics. The region is also of major importance for birds. Hundreds
of thousands of geese, ducks and other waders flock to the shallow wetlands every year. Amongst them are rare species like the lesser white-fronted goose Anser erythropus and the spoonbill Platalea leucorodia.