Lake Nagyszéksós of Mórahalom is located 20 km from Szeged. The area is part of the Körös-ér Landscape Protection Area which covers 2223 hectares in total including 90 hectares of the former Ásotthalom moorland Nature Protection Area.
Originally the natural water body with sodic lake character collected water of the surrounding fens and it has been utilized as fishpond since the second half of the last century. Decrease of the water level and the dry-up of the area ended the fish-farming activities and the open water surface of the lake has been covered by reed by the end of the 20th century.
Habitat reconstruction works were initiated by Mórahalom City Council and Kiskunság National Park Directorate in 2008 when water buffalos were placed on the lakebed covered by reed. This is how the first buffalo reserve of South Alföld was established. These animals are adapted to wetlands and grazing with them impressively restored the former sodic lake.
Most of the water surface is open again and grazing of the surrounding grassland offers appropriate habitats for the nesting of classic sodic lake breeders. Black-winged stilt (Himantopus himantopus), pied avocet (Recurvirostra avosetta), black-tailed godwit (Limosa limosa) and common redshank (Tringa totanus) started to breed here again as a result and whiskered tern (Chlidonias hybridus), white-eyed pochard (Aythya nyroca) and black-necked grebe (Podiceps nigricollis) also find home in the flora of the wetlands on the water bodies.
Watchtower and educational trail on the edge of Lake Nagyszéksós are popular among tourists, therefore bird community of the area got used to human presence completely. Thus birds breeding or feeding in the lakebed can be observed in a quite close distance which makes the buffalo reserve enjoyable not only among birdwatchers but nature photographers as well. Moreover moorlands and fens of the area (Csodarét of Ásotthalom, Tanaszi-fen of Mórahalom) create long-lasting experience with the masses of protected and strictly protected botanical values for plant enthusiastic visitors.
Lake Nagyszéksós of Mórahalom is open to public for free.