Wildlife Rehabilitation and Breeding Centre - Green Balkans

The birds arrived in the Rescue Center on March 8th, after a three-day journey from Spain. The vultures were imported from Majorca (Spain) as part of a National Program for Reintroduction of Vultures in Bulgaria.

The birds will stay at the Center for about a month, and then placed in special cages constructed in “Sinite kamani” and “Vrachanski Balkan” Nature Parks and in Kotlenska Mountain before being released in the wild.

Today’s event was attended by lots of official guests: the Vice President of the Republic of Bulgaria – General Angel Marin, the Ambassador of Germany – Mr. Geier, the Mayor of Stara Zagora Municipality – Prof. Tanchev, representatives of the MEP Mrs. Petya Stavreva, the Headmaster of the Veterinary Medicine Vocational School in Stara Zagora – Dr. Yabalkarov, the Director of the Regional Inspectorate of Environment and Waters in Stara Zagora – Mr. Videv, representatives of the State Forestry Department in Stara Zagora, guests and friends of Green Balkans. Juan Sanches – representative of the Black Vulture Conservation Foundation, arrived from Spain to take part in the event.
Other important guests to the event were Green Balkans’ partners within the reintroduction program – Bulgarian Environmental Partnership Foundation, Birds of Prey Protection Society, Fund for Wild Flora and Fauna, as well as representatives of “Central Balkan” National Park and “Vrachanski Balkan”, “Sinite Kamani”, and “Balgarka” Nature Parks – some of the sites envisaged for reintroduction of Griffon Vultures.

The transfer of the Griffon Vulture is an important step of the realization of the Balkan Vulture Action Plan, initiated and implemented by an international Consortium of NGOs. In 2005, the Consortium signed a Memorandum of Understanding and joint actions with the Ministry of Environment and Waters of the Republic of Bulgaria.
The plan provides for the reintroduction of 100-150 Griffon Vultures (Gyps fulvus) within three years. The birds will be reintroduced in the Balkan Mountains, where the species has been functionally extinct. The efforts made the specialists in Austria, France, and Italy have already been crowned with success. Now, a similar attempt to restore an extinct bird species will be made for the first time in Bulgaria.

The threatened birds are donated by the Government of Extremadura, Castilla La Mancha y Balleares  and are provided by the Black Vulture Conservation Foundation, Majorca (Spain), and the whole event is realized with the support of the Frankfurt Zoological Society and the German Federal Environmental Foundation. In Bulgaria, the project is implemented through the joint efforts of Green Balkans, Bulgarian Environmental Partnership Foundation, Birds of Prey Protection Society, Fund for Wild Flora and Fauna, etc. After their stay at the Rescue Center the birds will be placed in special adaptation aviaries in “Sinite Kamani” and “Vrachanski Balkan” Nature Parks as well as in the region of Kotel.
We would like to express once again our gratitude to all official guests and citizens who attended the event, as well as all those who contributed to the realization of the reintroduction program.

For further information about the event, please contact:
Neli Arabadzhieva, PR, Green Balkans; mobile: +359 (0) 884 257 711, e-mail: narabadzhieva@greenbalkans.org
Dr. Hristina Klisurova, Veterinarian, Wildlife Rescue Center; mobile: +359 (0) 886 570 053; e-mail: hhristova@greenbalkans.org

Further information about:
- Green Balkans’ work – www.greenbalkans.org;
- Wildlife Rescue Center’s conservation activities - www.greenbalkans-wrbc.org;
- Balkan Vulture Action Plan - www.balkanvultures.net.