Developing a wildlife corridor

Situated on the Adriatic coast of Croatia, the 145-kilometre long Velebit massif is one of the most biodiverse areas in the Balkans with a range of unique habitats that support species such as the Balkan chamois, red deer, brown bear, wolf and Eurasian lynx. Supported by a huge growth in coastal tourism over the last 10-15 years, many local inhabitants have moved out of the area towards the coast. As a result, many areas of this beautiful region are now characterised by land abandonment, rural exodus and fading cultural tradition.

Rewilding Europe is working with local partners to transform these challenges into opportunities. This has seen the acquisition of 22,500-hectares of hunting concessions, situated between two large national parks, together creating a zone of 43,200 hectares. Here rewilding is offering a fresh approach to wildlife management and underpinning the development of a local nature-based economy, creating a wildlife and ecological corridor in the heart of the Velebit mountains.

A new wildlife watching venture saw the construction and opening of two wildlife hides in this reserve. These will benefit the local community through job opportunities and boosted tourism income. They represent the first step in developing the landscape’s vast potential as a sustainable nature tourism destination.

Rewilding forests

In collaboration with the University of Zagreb’s Faculty of Forestry, the Rewilding Velebit team are working to have the Ramino Korito old-growth beech forest, located in the southern part of Velebit Mountains, designated a special woodland reserve. Ramino Korito is an important ecological hotspot in the growing network of protected forests in the Rewilding Velebit landscape, and its designation will highlight its rarity and and biological value. This, in turn, will positively impact the number of visitors and thereby boost the landscape’s nature-based economy.

Open plains grazing

Natural grazing by large herbivores creates dynamic, biodversity-rich mosaic landscapes. On the Lika Plains, a scenic grassland located in the foothills of Velebit Mountains, Rewilding Europe is working to reintroduce wild and semi-wild grazers; the animals live in social herds without direct human management and are steadily moving toward self-sufficiency.

The restoration of grazing on the Lika Plains is already changing the landscape, with the first signs of dynamic mosaic habitats now visible. The comeback of wild herbivores is also supporting the restoration of trophic cascades, as carnivores such as wolves, bears and lynx prey on them.

The Lika Plains showcase the benefits of allowing natural processes to create wild, unmanaged landscapes. With part of the site visible from the highway connecting Zagreb with Croatia’s southern coast, the presence of large herbivores a positive synergy between ecological, business and tourism interests. Velebit is one of the case study landscapes of the three-year GrazeLIFE project. The project evaluates the benefits of various land management models involving domesticated and wild/semi-wild herbivores.