LTER Site Neusiedler See-Seewinkel

The LTER Site Neusiedler See-Seewinkel is situated at Lake Neusiedl in Illmitz (Austria) and is operated by the Biological Station and the Nationalpark Neusiedler See-Seewinkel. Both institutions offer high scale experience in basic and applied ecological research in Burgenland over the last 50 years. Located in the middle of the Neusiedler See – Seewinkel national park the Biological station hosts a high standard chemical and microbiological laboratory for water analysis, which has an accreditation for a variety of physico-chemical, chemical and microbiological parameters as well as diverse sampling procedures. The Institution provides expert opinions for water quality as well as applied cross-sectoral research and ecosystem monitoring. The Neusiedler See - Seewinkel National Park is the first cross-border National Park in Austria and the first Austrian National Park recognised by the IUCN. It covers in total about 90km² on Austrian territory. About 50% of the area (about 4500 ha) is a Nature Reserve Zone, which remains untouched by humans. This zone is dominated by the southernmost Austrian part of the reed belt from Lake Neusiedl. The Conservation Zones are mainly cultural landscapes and require landscape conservation measures and habitat management like pasturing, mowing, cutting reed or water retention. These measures are taken to preserve the cultural landscape and its biodiversity that has developed over centuries. Important habitats like 160 km² of reed belt and around 40 periodically dry soda lakes, as well as sand habitats, dry and wet meadows can be found closely associated with vineyards, cropland, touristic infrastructure and rural settlements. Long-term monitoring programs regarding bird populations, fish ecology or the grazing management enable the cross-border National Park Neusiedler See - Seewinkel to provide biological data from flora and fauna. Furthermore, all soda lakes are monitored frequently regarding salinity, oxygen, temperature, color etc. and biological parameters such as species diversity and quantity of macrozoobenthos. The Site is a well-known cooperation partner of local, regional, national and international institutions, stakeholders, Universities and state offices of Burgenland. With several different subsites and partners (ABOL (NHM Wien), Hydrographischer Dienst Burgenland, Medizinische Universität Wien, Universität Wien, Umweltbundesamt), the Biological Station is able to provide long-term data regarding meteorology, limnology, lake chemistry, entomology, botany, air quality and carbon-fluxes. Thus, the Biological Station provides bases for decision making with regard to the development of a balanced cultural landscape.

Last modified

2026-09-29 15:12:54

General Characteristics and Status

Site Status

Operational

Year Established

1971

Observed properties

Climate

Precipitation Sum: 697 mm
Temperature Mean: 11.5 °C
Standard Reference Period: 1991 - 2020

Affiliation and Network Specific Information

Affiliation

Projects

Natura 2000

FLUXNet

Ramsar Convention on Wetlands

UNESCO World Heritage Site

Photos

Biologische Station Neusiedler See

Online Measurment System in selected Soda Pans

Biologische Station Neusiedler See

dry soda pan

Greyleg goose (Anser anser)

Eurasian Spoonbill (Platalea leucorodia)

Water buffalos grazing in Apetlon

Bearded Reedling (Panurus biarmicus)

reed belt around Lake Neusiedl

mosaique of soda pans and agricultural landscape

Geographic

View in site map

Centroid/Representative Coordinates

Latitude: 47.768868 Longitude: 16.765909

Size

ca. 29232.16ha

Elevation (average)

117.00msl

Elevation (min)

114.00msl

Elevation (max)

131.00msl

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Site information [.json]

Centroid/representative coordinates [.shp] [.kml] [.geojson]

Bounding Box [.shp] [.kml] [.geojson]

Boundaries [.shp] [.kml] [.geojson]

Site Details

Ecosystem and Environmental Characteristics

GEO-BON Biome

Fresh water lakes

Biome

Fresh Water Lakes

Ecosystem Type

Agricultural

Grasslands

Temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands

Lakes

Fresh Water Lakes

Biogeographical Region

Continental Bio-geographical Region

EUNIS habitat

Grasslands and lands dominated by forbs, mosses or lichens (E)

Grasslands and lands dominated by forbs, mosses or lichens (E) » Dry grasslands (E1)

Grasslands and lands dominated by forbs, mosses or lichens (E) » Inland salt steppes (E6)

Grasslands and lands dominated by forbs, mosses or lichens (E) » Mesic grasslands (E2)

Grasslands and lands dominated by forbs, mosses or lichens (E) » Seasonally wet and wet grasslands (E3)

Habitat complexes (X)

Inland surface waters (C)

Inland surface waters (C) » Surface standing waters (C1)

Inland surface waters (C) » Surface standing waters (C1) » Permanent inland saline and brackish lakes, ponds and pools (C1.5)

Inland surface waters (C) » Surface standing waters (C1) » Temporary lakes, ponds and pools (C1.6)

Mires, bogs and fens (D)

Mires, bogs and fens (D) » Inland saline and brackish marshes and reedbeds (D6)

Air Temperature: Average Annual

11.50°C

Precipitation Annual

697.00mm

Landforms

Lake

Geology

The Seewinkel is located in the small Hungarian Plain or Pannonian Basin and is the lowest-lying region in Austria at an altitude of 114 metres above the Adriatic Sea. This lowland plain is separated from the Vienna Basin by the Leitha Mountains and is characterised by a gentle, hilly terrain consisting of incompletely consolidated sediments.
In the middle Tertiary period, around 16 million years ago, the area of today's Lake Neusiedl was covered by the foothills of the Thetys and characterised by a tropical-subtropical climate. The red algae and coral reefs found in the coastal areas subsequently contributed to the formation of the Leitha limestone.
The folding of the Alpine and Carpathian arcs led to tectonic subsidence of the areas in between. With the retreat of the Parathetys 13 million years ago, inland waters formed in the resulting lowlands, in which thick layers of sand, clay and loam were deposited. The Pannonian Plain and the Vienna Basin were formed. The four most recent ice ages contributed to the accumulation of enormous quantities of fluvial sediments. The interplay of tectonics and sedimentation also created characteristic metamorphic rocks such as limestone, sandstone and mica schist under enormous pressure. In short, the geology of northern Burgenland is characterised by crystalline rocks such as granite gneiss as footwall and younger sediments such as gravel and pebbles on the hanging wall.

Vegetation

The saline soils in Seewinkel are among the rarest soil types in Austria. With a very high surface salt concentration, these soils are poor in vegetation. Only strongly adapted plants (so-called halophytes) can occur on these areas due to physiological adaptations. Nevertheless, the mosaic-like vegetation structure around Lake Neusiedl is very diverse and provides a habitat for numerous animals with softwood meadows, salt steppes, dry and semi-dry grasslands, alluvial meadows, moor grass meadows and, of course, the reed belt and much more.

Soils

The saline soils in Seewinkel are among the rarest soil types in Austria. With a very high surface salt concentration, these soils are poor in vegetation. The soils and salt pans of the Seewinkel are characterised above all by the accumulation of sodium, calcium and magnesium salts in the higher soil horizons of shallow depressions and hollows, whereby sodium carbonate occurs in high concentrations and crystallises out on the surface in so-called salt pans, contributing to the landscape. In conjunction with the great dryness and high evaporation that characterise the area, these salts are dissolved from the underlying rock and brought to the surface by capillary action. The resulting soils are known as solonetz and solonchak. In addition to these two soil types, there are also fertile black earth deposits, which contribute to fertile soils through the accumulation of fine carbonate-containing sediments such as loess.

Hydrology

The water balance of Lake Neusiedl is primarily controlled by climatic factors - low precipitation and high evaporation - and the water level has been subject to constant strong fluctuations since its formation, ranging from complete drying out to an increase in water surface area to over 500 km². The lake basin is formed by a shallow depression between the Leitha Mountains and the Seewinkel or the westernmost foothills of the small Hungarian lowlands and today covers an area of around 320 km² - the characteristic reed belt covers around 180 km² - and an average depth of 1.5 metres on Austrian and Hungarian territory. The catchment area is relatively small and, at around 1000 km², is three times the size of the steppe lake. The Wulka is the only relevant surface tributary. The groundwater is almost negligible as an underground inflow due to the low rainfall ( an average of 500-600 mm per year). The only steppe lake in Central Europe is also characterised by an above-average salt content ( an average of 1g per litre), which is due to the salt-rich rock layers in the subsoil and the lack of a natural outflow. However, artificial drainage canals such as the Einser Canal, built in 1910, have interfered with the natural water balance, which is a contentious subject, especially at times of low water levels.

Protection Level and Land Use

Protection Level (IUCN category)

Category II – National Park

Category IV – Habitat/Species Management Area

Type, Design and Scale

Site Type

Stationary land-based site

Design of Experimentation

partly experimentation

Scale of Experimentation

micro sites

Design of Observation