The natural grazing of the Lika Plains in Croatia got a boost last week with the arrival of a herd of Konik horses from Latvia. 45 horses, well adapted to harsh winter conditions and the presence of large predators, are already exploring their new habitat in one of Europe’s most spectacular landscapes.
Rewilding Europe is delighted to receive financial support from the Toyota Fund for Europe for working in the Southern Carpathians and Velebit rewilding areas.
On Tuesday 19th May, the release of a herd counting 23 Bosnian mountain horses marked the start of an exciting natural grazing pilot in 500 hectares of the spectacular Lika Plains in the Velebit rewilding area. Guests from Adessium Foundation, Rogier van der Weerd and Floris van Hest together with Frans Schepers, Managing Director of Rewilding Europe, jointly cut the Croatian coloured ribbon, symbolising the opening of the site and releasing the animals.
This May, a small team from the Croatian adventure travel company Adria Velebitica, a guest couple and Dutch bushcraft specialists from Extra Survival, joined Rewilding Europe for a Rewilding Tented Camp training programme in Velebit, Croatia.
More than 300 people living in the Velebit Mountains and coastal area were interviewed in November 2014, in order to obtain a clearer image of the local opinion on nature conservation, wildlife protection and development of nature-based tourism.
Only six days after the signature of a herd contract with two Croatian family farms, Rewilding Velebit brought in 22 Sayaguesa cattle from Spain to the vast abandoned plains in front of the Velebit Mountains. This means yet another breeding station for the Tauros Programme, which will greatly strengthen its effect.
Two bulls of the Spanish breed Sayaguesa were transported from The Netherlands in mid October, to become a part of the Tauros Breeding Program in the Velebit mountains, Croatia.
On the morning of September 29, a horse transport was made in cooperation with the International Association of Bosnian Mountain Horse breeders, for release in Malo Libinje, at Petar Knežević’s farm in the Velebit rewilding area. I accompanied the truck carrying this first group of five new Bosnian mountain horses.
With this, one more step is taken along the road towards landscape rewilding through restoring the natural grazing by wild keystone species.
The herd of Boskarin cattle, that was transferred to the Tauros Programme breeding site in the Velebit Mountains at the end of March 2014, has a new member. A bull calf was born in the chilly summer night between 30 and 31 July, healthy and gorgeous.