65 fallow deer were released on the southern shore of the Kardzhali reservoir in November and December, and are now being monitored by the Rewilding Rhodopes team. The release is part of ongoing efforts in the area to restore deer numbers to a viable level, providing a sustainable natural prey and carrion source while reinstating key links in the food web.
The European rewilding movement has come a long way since Rewilding Europe was founded in 2011. The second in our series of impact stories takes a look at how rewilding has strengthened the Circle of Life in Europe over the last decade.
Over the last five years the LIFE vultures initiative has helped to stabilise and grow griffon and cinereous vulture populations in the Rhodope Mountains of Bulgaria and Greece. Future rewilding efforts will build on the initiative’s achievements.
A new calf has just been born to the free-roaming bison herd in the Rhodope Mountains rewilding area in Bulgaria. This shows the animals are settling in well and advances the local rewilding process.
Griffon vultures continue to do well in the Rhodope Mountains rewilding area in Bulgaria, with 72 chicks born this year. This is good news for wild nature and people and a well-earned reward for the local rewilding team.
A new partnership between Rewilding Europe and German shoemaker Wildling Shoes will see rewilding efforts scaled up in Europe, generating wide-ranging benefits for nature and people. The collaboration will kick off with support for rewilding actions in the Rhodope Mountains rewilding area.
Rewilding enthusiasts and nature lovers in Bulgaria and around the world can now get even closer to the work of the Rewilding Rhodopes team, with the launch of the new Rewilding Rhodopes website.
More than 70 fallow deer will be released in the Rhodope Mountains rewilding area in Bulgaria over the 2020/2021 winter period. As part of the long-term restoration of deer populations in the Rhodope Mountains of Bulgaria and Greece, the animals will revitalise food chains, create more functional ecosystems and boost nature-based tourism.
After an absence of centuries, wild European bison began roaming the Rhodope Mountains of southern Bulgaria in 2019. With the reintroduced herd already multiplying, the addition of two more animals will boost herd viability and resilience.
A positive site survey means the reintroduction of cinereous vultures in the Rhodope Mountains rewilding area in Bulgaria can begin in 2021. Overseen by the Rewilding Rhodopes team and partners, the return of this keystone species to the area as a breeding species will enhance local food chains.