Video. Theo Jansen's stunning walking sculptures showcased in new exhibition
Europe's water is under increasing pressure. Pollution, droughts, floods are taking their toll on our drinking water, lakes, rivers and coastlines. Join us on a journey around Europe to see why protecting ecosystems matters, how our wastewater can be better managed, and to discover some of the best water solutions. Video reports, an animated explainer series and live debate - find out why Water Matters, from Euronews.
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Euronews
25-06-2025
- Euronews
'It's like a miracle': the emotional reintroduction of the Bearded Vulture in Bulgaria
The 90-day-old chicks are already two metres wide, but they do not yet have the soft white feathers and beard characteristic of the adult birds. This prehistoric-looking animal has captured the imagination of ornithologists around the world. In the amphitheatre of Sliven's Tuida Fortress, hundreds of people marvel at three young Bearded Vultures about to be released onto the mountain peaks overlooking the town. This just so happens to be the very spot where the last known specimen in Bulgaria was found dead in 1972. This ceremony, held on Saturday 17 May, marked the culmination of the Bearded Vulture LIFE project and is part of decades of vulture reintroduction efforts in Bulgaria. On stage, Bulgarian and international ornithologists emphasised the importance of the return of Europe's rarest vulture to the Balkan Peninsula. A long-awaited return 'Bulgaria can be proud of this project. The Bearded Vulture used to live here for centuries, and its population should flourish here again,' Valeri Georgiev, Head of the Biodiversity Division at the Bulgarian Ministry of Environment, told Euronews. After the ceremony, the three chicks were taken to a secret release site. A team of experts gently placed the vultures, named Balkan, LifeBG, and Boev, in artificial nests protected from predators. One of these birds was born in the breeding centre in Stara Zagora, Bulgaria. The other two came from Ostrava Zoo in the Czech Republic. For months, they will be fed, monitored with a camera, and looked after until they fly away to nest in the wild. 'All my life, I've imagined this moment. It was a distant dream that has become increasingly real. Now it's a miracle,' ornithologist Emilian Stoynov, Director of the Fund for Wild Flora & Fauna (FWFF), told Euronews. Turning the tide of extinction Over the past two decades, Stoynov and other stakeholders such as the NGO Green Balkans have helped reintroduce hundreds of vultures — mainly Cinereous Vultures and Griffon Vultures — to the mountains of Bulgaria. Of the four native vulture species, only the Bearded Vulture was still absent in the wild. The scavenger had gone extinct across the Balkan Peninsula in recent decades, and the closest wild populations are currently found on the island of Crete, but a similar reintroduction programme has been launched in Romania. 'It's vital to have a connection between the populations in Türkiye, Asia, the Alps and other parts of Europe. This connection has disappeared for decades, and now we're returning the stepping stones to recreate that gene flow again,' Hans Pohlmann, President of the Vulture Conservation Foundation (VCF), explained. The VCF considers the species' successful reintroduction in several regions of Western Europe, such as the Alps and the Pyrenees, as 'one of the most encouraging examples of wildlife conservation in the world.' A fascinating and useful scavenger Vultures play an important ecosystemic role: by eating dead animals, they prevent the spread of viruses. 'The Bearded Vulture feeds mainly on bones, which is unique in the animal world and particularly useful because it cleans up carcasses in nature,' says Andreana Dicheva, Breeding Programme Coordinator, Green Balkans. 'With the reintroduction of the Bearded Vulture, Bulgaria's vultures will be able to wipe out an entire carcass,' adds Dobromir Borislavov, Director of the Sofia Zoo. Vultures still face significant threats, but improved nesting conditions and food supply techniques, as well as the promotion of sustainable stock breeding have increased conservation capacity. Unlike other continents, vulture populations are increasing in Europe. There were only 465 breeding pairs of Bearded Vultures in Europe in 2022, according to the Vulture Conservation Foundation. 'There is still a long way to go, but the knowledge is here, as well as the passion. So, I think we can make it,' says Stoynov.
Euronews
11-06-2025
- Euronews
Video. Theo Jansen's stunning walking sculptures showcased in new exhibition
Water Matters Europe's water is under increasing pressure. Pollution, droughts, floods are taking their toll on our drinking water, lakes, rivers and coastlines. Join us on a journey around Europe to see why protecting ecosystems matters, how our wastewater can be better managed, and to discover some of the best water solutions. Video reports, an animated explainer series and live debate - find out why Water Matters, from Euronews.
Euronews
10-06-2025
- Euronews
Video. 1,500-year-old Byzantine tombs uncovered in war-torn Syrian town
Water Matters Europe's water is under increasing pressure. Pollution, droughts, floods are taking their toll on our drinking water, lakes, rivers and coastlines. Join us on a journey around Europe to see why protecting ecosystems matters, how our wastewater can be better managed, and to discover some of the best water solutions. Video reports, an animated explainer series and live debate - find out why Water Matters, from Euronews.
