Greater Flamingo
Phoenicopterus roseus
The icon of Korgalzhyn. The world's most northerly breeding colony: a shimmering pink haze across the salt flats.
May – September
Birds & Wildlife
Who you'll meet
From flamingos to saiga — a portrait of Korgalzhyn's headline species.
More than 367 bird species have been recorded in the region, alongside a variety of mammals that inhabit the open steppe. These are some of the wildlife encounters our guests treasure most.
Dalmatian Pelican
Pelecanus crispus
One of the world's heaviest flying birds, breeding here in globally significant numbers on the region's freshwater lakes.
April – October
Sociable Lapwing
Vanellus gregarius
Critically endangered and a flagship of the Kazakh steppe. Korgalzhyn is one of the best places on Earth to find it.
April – June
White-headed Duck
Oxyura leucocephala
A stiff-tailed, globally threatened diving duck of the reed-fringed lakes, the males unmistakable with sky-blue bills.
May – September
Great Bustard
Otis tarda
One of the heaviest birds capable of flight, displaying males turn themselves into white feathered fountains across the spring steppe.
April – September
Steppe Eagle
Aquila nipalensis
The great raptor of the grasslands, quartering low over the steppe or perched on the kurgans that dot the horizon.
April – September
Demoiselle Crane
Grus virgo
The most elegant of cranes, gathering in pre-migration flocks whose bugling calls carry far across the open plain.
May – August
Saiga Antelope
Saiga tatarica
An ice-age survivor with an unmistakable trunk-like nose, the saiga herds are one of the steppe's most moving spectacles.
Year-round
When to see what
Indicative peak presence by month. Timing shifts year to year with weather and water levels.
PresentAprMayJunJulAugSepOct
Greater Flamingo
Dalmatian Pelican
Sociable Lapwing
White-headed Duck
Great Bustard
Steppe Eagle
Demoiselle Crane
Saiga Antelope