A terraced chain of sixteen lakes linked by waterfalls, in a Croatian national park.
Surface area
2 km²
Maximum depth
about 46 m
Elevation
503 m
Continent
Europe
Countries
Croatia
Did you know?
The lakes tumble into one another over natural travertine dams that the flowing water is still building today.
Little-known fact
Their colours shift from turquoise to green to grey depending on minerals, sunlight and the angle you view them.
Highlights
- Sixteen lakes linked by falls
- Dams built by the water itself
- Colours that shift with the light
Life in the Plitvice Lakes
The fish and animals, waterbirds and water plants — including some of the rarest — that this water supports.
Animals & fish
Eurasian otter
A sleek, playful hunter whose return to a river is a sign the water has run clean again.
Waterbirds
Grey heron
A patient, statue-still angler that stalks the shallows of rivers and lakes across the Old World.
Mallard
The familiar green-headed dabbling duck — ancestor of most domestic ducks — found on waters worldwide.
Water plants & reeds
Water lily
Rooted in the mud, its round pads and star-like flowers float on the still surface of lakes and backwaters.
Interactive · 3D dive
How deep does a lake go?
A lake is layered from the sunlit, weed-filled shallows down to a cold, dark bed. Tap a zone to dive the submersible through the water column — and meet the life that belongs at each depth.
Tip: hover the column to tilt it · tap a layer to dive
Littoral Zone
The warm, bright band close to shore where sunlight reaches the bottom. Reeds, water lilies and rooted plants grow thickly here, making it the busiest, most crowded part of the whole lake.
Who lives here