The Göksu River (Turkish: Göksu Nehri), known in antiquity as the Calycadnus and in the Middle Ages as the Saleph, is a river on the Taşeli Plateau in southern Turkey. Its two sources arise in the Taurus Mountains—the northern in the Geyik Mountains and the southern in the Haydar Mountains—and meet south of Mut. The combined stream then flows south to the Göksu Delta in the Mediterranean Sea near Silifke.
The river is 260 km long and empties into the Mediterranean Sea 16 km southeast of Silifke (in Mersin province). The Göksu Delta, including Akgöl Lake and Paradeniz Lagoon, is one of the most important breeding areas in the Near East; over 300 bird species have been observed. Among others, flamingos, herons, bee-eaters, kingfishers, gulls, nightingales and warblers breed here. The endangered loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) lays eggs here.
