The Hula Nature Reserve

The Hula sea was part of the Kineret (Sea of Galilee) in prehistoric times. Over the eons, a land mass was pushed out, separating the two bodies of water. The Hula sea was surrounded with swamps, full of cyprus and papyrus, and a rich variety of wildlife; water buffaloes, wild boar, many exotic birds, etc.

When the pioneers settled Israel, they decided to drain the Hula sea because they needed arable land, and also needed to get rid of malaria-carrying mosquitoes. They began the project shortly after Israel's independence.  They drained the whole lake, driving into extinction many of species living in the area. Some of these species were unique to the Hula and are now globally extinct. This act also wreaked havoc on migratory birds from Europe and Africa, which have used the Hula as a way station, and damaged the ecosystem in other ways as well.

A concerted effort by nature preservationists in Israel and the world led to the creation of The Hula Nature Reserve, where a section of the valley was reflooded, and repopulated with wildlife (the species that could be obtained elsewhere, that is). A certain fish which thrives on mosquito eggs was introduced as well, to manage the mosquito population.

Many of the migratory birds returned to the Hula, and springtime and fall are supposedly marvelous at the reserve.

Unfortunately, we got there at mid-day, on a very VERY hot day. The boys and I set out on a 1.3 km trail.  While we did not see much of the wildlife, which was probably taking refuge from the heat as best it could, and the heat was unbelievable (every few hundred meters I would douse their heads with water, to keep cool), it was still worthwhile. The water was full of turtles and catfish (big, UGLY things), and we did see some pelicans, egrets and other birds, beautiful butterflies, and unusual vegetation.