Česma

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The Česma is a river in central Croatia. It is about 106 kilometers long and is a left tributary of the Lonja-Trebež, feeding the Danube basin via Lonja and Sava. The river drains a basin of roughly 3,253 square kilometers.

The Česma forms where the Grđevica and Barna streams meet near Pavlovac in Veliki Grđevac. Its basin is fan-shaped and gets water from streams that rise on the Bilogora and Moslavačka Gora hills. The Bilogora slopes are rugged with many springs, which flow more in wet periods and can dry up in dry seasons. The river has a small drop in elevation from source to mouth, which once caused frequent floods before regulation.

About a century ago, the river was channelized, embankments were built, and land was dried for farming and malaria control. Today, the former wetlands around Česma are largely fish ponds fed by streams that flow into the river. These ponds provide an important refuge for wading birds between the Drava and Sava rivers.

There are several major fish farms along the Česma: north of the river is ribnjačastvo Dubrava, and to the south are Siščani, Blatnica, and Narta. The ponds extend about five kilometers along the river, and the total area of commercial ponds is around 1,346 hectares. The river rises at about 114 meters above sea level and ends at about 84 meters, with an average discharge of roughly 14 cubic meters per second.