Dayet Srji

Dayet Srji is a shallow depression on the flat west of the Erg Chebbi dunes that has no outlet, so in years when enough rain falls in the Atlas and the wadis run, it fills into a broad shallow lake - and then, improbably, greater flamingos arrive, along with ruddy shelduck, avocet, black-winged stilt and desert species like cream-coloured courser and Egyptian nightjar on the surrounding flats. The sight of flamingos standing in water with the orange dune wall behind them is the image people come for. The catch is that it is entirely dependent on rain: in dry years, which have been most of them recently, the bed is a white salt crust with nothing on it, and it has stayed dry through whole seasons. Ask in Merzouga before driving out. The desert birding around the lake bed is worth doing regardless, and local guides know the species.

The landscape

• A seasonal salt lake - a closed depression that fills only after real rain.
• Flamingos against dunes - when it holds water, birds with the erg behind them.
• Desert species - courser, nightjar and larks on the surrounding flats.
• A salt crust - what is there in dry years, which is most of them lately.

When to go

February to May, and only in a wet year - ask in Merzouga first. Two hours.

Before you go

It is dry far more often than not and has stayed dry for entire seasons. There are no facilities or hides. Tracks are sandy and can bog a low car. Summer heat here is extreme and dangerous.

Nearby

Erg Chebbi's dunes are east; Rissani is north-west.