Re-Constructing a Vanished Migration Corridor

The city of Adana on the southern Mediterranean coast of Turkey is highly dependent on the Seyhan River, which flows through the city area. Apart from its economic value for the surrounding agricultural lands, the basin is also an important refuge for migratory birds crossing the continent. Adana is the last place where bird communities coming from Africa gather before continuing their journey. The main attraction for thousands of birds is the basin’s rich water network, which is severely impacted by a series of dams built on the river. By their very nature , the dams prevent the flow of water, which is contrary to the ecological principles of the river. Because the sustainability of bird communities and the watershed depends on the migratory cycles of native fish species, the project proposes an infrastructural typology known as a ‘fish ladder’ that is mandatory for newly constructed dams, but is not currently in place at Seyhan Dam. 

However, this typology is reinterpreted in an unconventional way by extending it to the level of an urban park and creating a water corridor between the upper and lower parts of the dam that revives the vanished migration practices of native fish species. It integrates public spaces with a constructed riparian corridor and introduces volumes of an aquatic research institute that studies watershed ecology.