2 live and 32 dead white storks, turtles and hedgehogs found by the Green Balkans team during a fire evacuation in the Sakar region!

A couple of days ago, the team and volunteers of Green Balkan’s Wildlife Rehabilitation and Breeding center went to the region of the villages Stydena, Radovets, Filipovo, Ustrem and Sakar, where, until recently, burned one of Bulgaria’s biggest fires.
 
During our tour, prompted by a series of signals from local residents, we found 2 live white storks, although in critical condition and 32 dead ones - all of them young, hatched only this year. One curious fact is that one of the live birds found was raised in Hungary. It flew thousands of kilometers until here…
 
A large part of these birds were found near high-voltage poles, with traces of electric shock, but some of them were also at a distance of more than 300 meters of these electricity lines - in a pine forest.
 
Most of the corps had varying degrees of damage, which does not allow the extraction of real autopsy findings. But on three of the intact corpses the veterinarians of the Wildlife Rehabilitation and Breeding center did autopsies. 2 of the storks had strong hyperemic tracheas and lungs. This is proof of death by suffocation or a problem with oxygen uptake, said the veterinary specialists.
 
The age of the birds, the amount of deaths (which was not observed previous years in this region), and the time of death, allowed the autopsy leaders to conclude that the reason of this mass death is indeed the fires. They probably scared these young and naive birds into panic, leading them to land on dangerous power lines.
 
At the moment, this region is home to pre-migratory flocks of white storks in the area. This data was gathered by the project BestBelt team from the Green Balkans with financial subsidies from the European Union. Hundreds of these storks gather here before leaving on their migration to the south.
 
Other than the storks, the Green Balkans team found 3 live turtles, yet in bad condition and  6 death ones.  Additionally, 3 dead hedgehogs and hundreds of dead insects were found. The live turtles are currently getting help of thanks to the veterinarians at the Wildlife Rehabilitation and Breeding Center.
 
Both live white storks have been admitted for treatment at the Wildlife Rehabilitation and Breeding Center's clinic and are also receiving specialized care.
 
Unfortunately, in addition to the direct consequences for nature and people, fires also have their indirect effects, which are yet to become clear.
 
The sad part is that 90% of fires are intentional… and even sadder is that we do not account for the long term effects these fires can have, even after they are put out.
 
We are thanking our volunteers from the Student Ecology Club “Barbatus” at the Thracian University and the employees from the Border Police, Svilengrad, who joined our campaign.
 
For more information: Dr. Rusko Petrov - 0884877544