Few people know that the Danube is the second European river after Rhone from France. It is 4,178 km long and it was called "The King of the European Rivers" by Napoleon Bonaparte. On the Romanian territory there are its last 1,075 km.. Before going in the Black Sea, it forms its own delta. In this region, favoured by the proximity of the sea, the climate is temperate-continental, ideal for more than 300 species of birds that can be found on both sides of the river. A lot of these species, like the pelican, the aquila with white tail and the wild goose, are protected by the law. In its waters live more than 60 species of fish of fresh water, like the sturgeon, the pike, the crucian.
The mammals which populate this region are the otter, the wild cats and the polecat. There are more than 1,500 species of plants, like the white lily, that stand as a proof of an air rich in oxygen. The trees of this huge natural park are the oak, the willow and the black poplar, which form big forests that are declared monuments of the nature. Letea is the most impressive forest because it offers the tourists the sensation of an equatorial jungle.
The population that lives in the Danube Delta, with fishing as the principal occupation, is only a little part of the total population (15,000 inhabitants) and includes the Lipovans (ethnics of Slav origin) that are very kind and with a culture rich in secular traditions. With the UNESCO’s help, the whole territory of the Danube Delta was declared "Reserve of the Biosphere". The main city is Tulcea, the place of departure for all the ships.
