2024-03-28 14:59:53
Spain donated 9 birds to us to repopulate the species
Sanitarians of wildlife. This is what they call the black vultures, which you have hardly seen flying freely anywhere in our country. They disappeared 50-60 years ago due to the spread of poison on the predators and wild animals whose carcasses they feed on.
Although in our country there are good conditions for the recovery of the species, this process will be difficult. A few days ago, 9 black vultures or kartals, as they are also called, arrived in our country as a donation from the Regional Government of Extramadura and the Regional Government of Andalusia. The birds come from the wilds of Spain, having undergone rehabilitation or treatment procedures after being injured for various reasons in the wild. The vultures are young but fully recovered at various rehabilitation centers and are deemed capable of surviving in the wild. Now
will remain in a cage for several months so that it can accustomed, and then they will be released into the The Kresna gorge
The birds come to us under a project for the restoration of the species of the organizations “Green Balkans”, the Fund for Wild Flora and Fauna and the Society for the Protection of Birds of Prey.
Black vultures limit the spread of zoonotic diseases (infections) among wild and domestic animal populations, such as the swine fever epidemic. Vultures completely dispose of the carcasses of domestic animals, which are now secured by ecarizages. However, this costs farmers and the economy hundreds of thousands of BGN and significant environmental pollution.
These birds disappeared years ago on the lands of Bulgaria, but there is now a chance for them to return again. “It is a very difficult process. It is very difficult to return them. There are 4 European species of vultures – black, Egyptian, bearded and griffon. We started the process more than 15 years ago with the return of the griffon vulture. It is a rare species, but compared to others it can be seen in Europe”, says Ivelin Ivanov, who is from the “Green Balkans” organization. According to him, there are more than 100 nesting pairs of griffon vultures in the Stara Planina and in the Kresnen Gorge, and the species is now considered to be permanently nesting in our country. But the next big challenge for conservationists is to bring back the population of the black vulture, which has been extinct in our country for almost 100 years as a breeding species.
“Thanks to this return program we have 1-2 breeding pairs each, and we cannot speak of a sustainable population yet. But these are the initial steps for the return of the species”, says Ivelin Ivanov.
The project is within 7 years and during this period about 60 birds may arrive from Spain. Only then will there be a sustainable population in our country.
The black vulture can easily be seen in nature because it is a huge bird, with a wingspan of up to three meters. It makes its nests in trees, unlike the other three species of vultures, which nest on rocks. These birds are not so colonial, they live in pairs, but their nests are close to each other. They lay one egg each year in early spring. The cub learns to fly after about half a year.
The newly arrived birds from Spain are unlikely to have a generation next year. They become sexually mature between their third and fourth year. So in about two years they may have cubs.
“The main reason for the species to disappear is when the state starts mass-using poisons against predators. She gave the hunters poison so that the predators could be poisoned. This was official state policy. This is how almost all birds of prey are destroyed”, says Hristo Peshev from the Wild Flora and Fauna Fund.
Even today, however, herd owners continue to secretly put poison. Another reason for the death of these birds is unsecured electric poles where they land and often die of electrocution.
“Vultures are disappeared altogether Europe hbecause of the eternal conflict of the man with the predator
Although it is forbidden to put poison everywhere, it continues to be put. The difference is that in Europe punishments are imposed, and here for 15 years now we have dozens of cases of proven poisonous baits, but no perpetrator of this act has been revealed”, says Ivelin Ivanov.
The poison does not smell, but it can be seen, and its consequences are evident. Where it is laid, first the insects die, and then the small predators – foxes, jackals, ravens. “If someone sees poison placed, they should immediately call the nature protection organizations and the institutions”, advises Ivelin Ivanov.