Located at an altitude of 787 ft (240 m) on the hill of Montsec, Madine Lake extends between two valleys, not far from an American memorial of World War I. Classified as a National Hunting and Wild Fauna Reserve in 1998, the lake sits in the plain of Woëvre, at the heart of the Lorraine Regional Nature Park. Hundreds of migratory birds can be observed on its waters, such as the common crane. Uncommon waders like the star bittern also dwell in the reed beds of the lake's banks.