Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic p ...
word Ροπόταμος ''ropotamos'' meaning "border river") is a river in south-eastern
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Mac ...
Black Sea
The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, ...
Primorsko
Primorsko ( bg, Приморско ) is a town and seaside resort in southeastern Bulgaria, capital of homonymous municipality, part of Burgas Province. A well-known resort on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast, it is located 52 km south of Burg ...
.
The river is most often noted for its 30 m-wide mouth that is home to an abundance of
flora
Flora (: floras or florae) is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous (ecology), indigenous) native plant, native plants. The corresponding term for animals is ''fauna'', and for f ...
species, over 100 of which
endangered
An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and inv ...
in the country. The lower section of the river is a
protected area
Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...
since 1940 and forms part of the Ropotamo Reserve. The lower Ropotamo is a popular tourist attraction because of the
water lilies
''Water Lilies'' (or ''Nymphéas'', ) is a series of approximately 250 oil paintings by French Impressionist Claude Monet (1840–1926). The paintings depict his flower garden at his home in Giverny, and were the main focus of his artistic p ...
and the rock formations above the river, on some of which
white-tailed eagle
The white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla'') is a very large species of sea eagle widely distributed across temperate Eurasia. Like all eagles, it is a member of the family Accipitridae (or accipitrids) which includes other diurnal rapto ...
s nest.
Ropotamo Glacier
Ropotamo Glacier ( bg, ледник Ропотамо, lednik Ropotamo, ) is a glacier extending from northeast to southwest and from northwest to southeast on the Burgas Peninsula, Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarcti ...
on
Livingston Island
Livingston Island (Russian name ''Smolensk'', ) is an Antarctic island in the Southern Ocean, part of the South Shetlands Archipelago, a group of Antarctic islands north of the Antarctic Peninsula. It was the first land discovered south of 60� ...
in the
South Shetland Islands
The South Shetland Islands are a group of Antarctic islands with a total area of . They lie about north of the Antarctic Peninsula, and between southwest of the nearest point of the South Orkney Islands. By the Antarctic Treaty of 195 ...
,
Antarctica
Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest co ...
is named after Ropotamo River.
Geography
Under the name Tserovska River, the Ropotamo originates from the Bosna Ridge in the Strandzha Mountains at some 500 m south-west of the Bosna Peak (454 m) at an altitude of 400 m. Up until the village of
Novo Panicharevo
Novo Panicharevo is a village in Primorsko Municipality, in Burgas Province, in southeastern Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated ...
it flows in north-eastern direction in a deep and narrow forested valley. Further downstream from the village it leaves the mountains and turns eastwards in a wide valley. The Ropotamo then forms a narrow gorge between the ridges Medni Rid and Uzun Bair and enters a wide marshy valley near its mouth. It empties into the
Black Sea
The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, ...
in a small homonymous bay to the west of Cape Saint Demetrius. Near its mouth there is a long and wide liman separated from the sea by sandspits, which is navigable for small vessels.
Ropotamo's drainage basin spans a territory of 249 km². It borders the basins of the rivers Izvorska that empties into
Lake Mandrensko
Lake Mandrensko or Lake Mandra ( bg, Мандренско езеро, ''Mandrensko ezero'') is the southernmost of the Burgas Lakes, located in the immediate proximity of the Black Sea and close to Burgas. Being 8 km long and 1.3 km wide at maximum ...
to the north-west,
Veleka
The Veleka ( , ) is a river in the very southeast of Bulgaria (Burgas Province), as well as the very northeast of European Turkey. It is 147 km long, of which 108 km lies in BulgariaDyavolska reka to the south and south-east. The river has predominantly rain feed with high water in winter (January–February) and low water in autumn (August). The average annual flow is 1.31 m3/s at the village of Veselie.
Ecology
Most of the river valley is covered in dense
riparian forest
A riparian forest or riparian woodland is a forested or wooded area of land adjacent to a body of water such as a river, stream, pond, lake, marshland, estuary, canal, sink or reservoir.
Etymology
The term riparian comes from the Latin word ...
s of
oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ''L ...
,
ash
Ash or ashes are the solid remnants of fires. Specifically, ''ash'' refers to all non-aqueous, non- gaseous residues that remain after something burns. In analytical chemistry, to analyse the mineral and metal content of chemical samples, ash ...
,
elm
Elms are deciduous and semi-deciduous trees comprising the flowering plant genus ''Ulmus'' in the plant family Ulmaceae. They are distributed over most of the Northern Hemisphere, inhabiting the temperate and tropical-montane regions of Nor ...
,
hornbeam
Hornbeams are hardwood trees in the flowering plant genus ''Carpinus'' in the birch family Betulaceae. The 30–40 species occur across much of the temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere.
Origin of names
The common English name ''hornb ...
, etc. The lower course hosts abundant populations of European white water lily (''
Nymphaea alba
''Nymphaea alba'', the white waterlily, European white water lily or white nenuphar , is an aquatic flowering plant in the family Nymphaeaceae. It is native to North Africa, temperate Asia, Europe and tropical Asia (Jammu and Kashmir).
Descript ...
'') and a number of rare plant and animal species. To protect these ecosystems in 1940 the authorities established the Ropotamo Reserve, which was designated a
Ramsar site
A Ramsar site is a wetland site designated to be of international importance under the Ramsar Convention,8 ha (O)
*** Permanent 8 ha (P)
*** Seasonal Intermittent < 8 ha(Ts)
** Alepu, Arkutino and several smaller protected areas. In the lower course there are rock formations, such as the Lion's Head, small caves, and the highest dune in the
Balkans
The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...
.
The most important mammal species are
red deer
The red deer (''Cervus elaphus'') is one of the largest deer species. A male red deer is called a stag or hart, and a female is called a hind. The red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Anatolia, Iran, and parts of wes ...
,
fallow deer
''Dama'' is a genus of deer in the subfamily Cervinae, commonly referred to as fallow deer.
Name
The name fallow is derived from the deer's pale brown colour. The Latin word ''dāma'' or ''damma'', used for roe deer, gazelles
A gazelle ...
,
roe deer
The roe deer (''Capreolus capreolus''), also known as the roe, western roe deer, or European roe, is a species of deer. The male of the species is sometimes referred to as a roebuck. The roe is a small deer, reddish and grey-brown, and well-adapt ...
,
wild boar
The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The species is ...
,
grey wolf
The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the gray wolf or grey wolf, is a large canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, and gray wolves, as popularly u ...
golden jackal
The golden jackal (''Canis aureus''), also called common jackal, is a wolf-like canid that is native to Southeast Europe, Southwest Asia, South Asia, and regions of Southeast Asia. The golden jackal's coat varies in color from a pale crea ...
. The largest birds of prey are the
white-tailed eagles
The white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla'') is a very large species of sea eagle widely distributed across temperate Eurasia. Like all eagles, it is a member of the family Accipitridae (or accipitrids) which includes other diurnal raptors ...
with a wing-span of over two meters, and the
Eurasian eagle-owl
The Eurasian eagle-owl (''Bubo bubo'') is a species of eagle-owl that resides in much of Palearctic, Eurasia. It is also called the Uhu and it is occasionally abbreviated to just the eagle-owl in Europe. It is one of the largest species of owl, ...
. The river is located on the Via Pontica bird migratory route. There are about 50 fish species, such as
flathead grey mullet
The flathead grey mullet (''Mugil cephalus'') is an important food fish species in the mullet family Mugilidae. It is found in coastal tropical and subtropical waters worldwide. Its length is typically . It is known with numerous English name ...
,
big-scale sand smelt
The big-scale sand smelt (''Atherina boyeri'') is a species of fish in the family Atherinidae. It is a euryhaline amphidromous fish, up to 20 cm in length.
Description
It is a small pelagic fish species which occurs near the surface in th ...
,
European eel
The European eel (''Anguilla anguilla'') is a species of eel, a snake-like, catadromous fish. They are normally around and rarely reach more than , but can reach a length of up to in exceptional cases.
Eels have been important sources of ...
,
round goby
The round goby (''Neogobius melanostomus'') is a fish. Defined as a euryhaline bottom-dwelling goby of the family Gobiidae, it is native to Central Eurasia, including the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea. Round gobies have established large non-n ...
,
Caucasian dwarf goby
''Knipowitschia caucasica'', the Caucasian dwarf goby, is a species of goby native to marine, fresh and brackish waters along the coasts of the Black Sea, the Sea of Azov, the Caspian Sea and the Aegean Sea and to the Haliacmon drainage of Greece ...
, as well as abundant populations of
European pond turtle
The European pond turtle (''Emys orbicularis''), also called commonly the European pond terrapin and the European pond tortoise, is a species of long-living freshwater turtle in the family Emydidae. The species is endemic to the Western Palearct ...