Griffon vulture Zivka went into Sinite Kamani National Park

In Bulgaria, griffon vulture Zivka is currently being prepared for release into the wild. The griffon vulture, born in Eindhoven Zoo in 2021, is currently still in an aviary in Sinite Kamani National Park where she is getting used to the environment together with other vultures. When Zivka is fully acclimated and can take care of herself, she will be released into the wild.

Zivka arrived in Bulgaria on Nov. 27, 2021, after which she first spent a month in quarantine at Green Balkans' Wildlife and Rescue Breeding Centre. Green Balkans provides various projects to protect wildlife.

Reintroduction of vultures
One of the projects Green Balkans is working on is the reintroduction of griffon vultures in Bulgaria. In fact, the birds of prey are nearly extinct there. This is partly because farmers put down poisoned carcasses to scare away bears and wolves. Among other things, griffon vultures eat intestines from carcasses, so the birds also died from the poisoned carcasses. The population of these animals therefore went into sharp decline since the 1970s. Thanks to Green Balkans' project, the population of griffon vultures is increasing again in Bulgaria's countryside.

Want to know more about the project? Readhere more!