10 Reasons You Must Visit Slovenia
4. The Hills Are Alive With Oh God Bears, Bears Everywhere
Okay, not everywhere, but still. Slovenia is home to a pretty excitable population of brown bears, and opportunities to go and view these magnificent beasts abound throughout. Whilst I am yet to stumble upon a bear in my 15 months in the country, this lack of contact does mean I am here to write this article. Slovenia is home to all the great beasts of Europe, including the lynx, the wolf and the dormouse, which isn't a great beast. In fact, Slovenia kind of resembles a big nature park, and the variety of fauna in the country is impressive to say the least.
Bird lovers are in for a treat too. Over 200 different species of bird nest here, ranging from the Ural Owl to the Red-Throated Loon to the Short-toed Snake Eagle and more. For the record, the last two are actual birds. Storks, hawks, gulls, cranes, larks, woodpeckers and more, you can even find parrots here. Well, one type at least.
Like fish? Plenty of sea creatures (seatures) here too. The caves in the south are home to the Human Fish, which might not be a fish but is a pretty unique beast in its own right. Perfectly adapted to life underground, the salamander thing doesn't have any pigmentation or working eyes, and can live to be up to 100 years old. Unless you happen to take a photo of it using flash photography, in which case it might not be alive anymore. The struggle of having no pigmentation is real.