Velika Polana

Velika Polana was named a European stork village in 1999 for the density of white stork nests among its houses, a consequence of the wet meadows and unimproved grassland of the Mura floodplain around it, which still hold enough frogs and insects to feed them. Nests sit on poles, chimneys and pylons through the village and can be watched from the street. The writer Miško Kranjec was born here and the village keeps a memorial house to him.

Background

Velika Polana, called Nagypalina in Hungarian, is the seat of its own municipality and had 870 residents in 2019 on 7.61 square kilometres. The title stork village is given to settlements with 10 or more stork nests. Around the village lie fenland and fields of wheat, pumpkins and sunflowers, and Črnec Creek, which feeds the Ledava, runs past the houses. Numerous trails cross the area, best covered by bicycle or on foot. The house where the writer Miško Kranjec, who lived from 1908 to 1983, was born also serves as the tourist information office.

Source: Wikipedia, "Velika Polana"

What you'll find

• The stork nests - white stork nests on poles and chimneys through the village.
• The wet meadows - the floodplain grassland that feeds the birds.
• The Kranjec memorial house - the birthplace of the Prekmurje writer Misko Kranjec.
• The nest platforms - poles put up to give birds an alternative to power lines.

When to go

April to August, when the storks are present; they arrive in late March and leave in August. June and July with chicks in the nests are the best. Outside that the nests stand empty.

Practical notes

Outside the stork season there is essentially nothing to see. The birds are wild and some nests fail; a visit is not guaranteed to find chicks. Facilities in the village are minimal.

Nearby

Lendava is east, and the Mura is north.

Key facts