The Great Bulgarian Vulture Return: Europe turns over a new leaf after centuries of bird persecution
Vultures are a fascinating and extremely useful species. These scavengers play an essential role in ecosystems, feeding on dead animal remains and thus helping to prevent the spread of bacteria and viruses.
Yet, for centuries, this animal was persecuted to the point of extinction in many parts of the continent, between the 19th and 20th centuries.
A vulture conservation movement emerged in Europe in the 1960s and was made popular by the documentaries of French ornithologist Michel Terrasse.
Various reintroduction efforts, supported by the European Union, have since succeeded in returning these fascinating animals to several regions of the continent, such as the Alps and the Pyrenees.
Soaring over the Balkan Mountains
In two mountainous regions of Bulgaria, successive European LIFE projects helped re-establish the Griffon Vulture in 2010, then the Cinereous Vulture in 2018, decades after they had disappeared.
Thanks to European funding, hundreds of birds have been released by the Bulgarian NGOs Fund for Wild Flora & Fauna (FWFF) and Green Balkans, with the support of international partners such as the Vulture Conservation Foundation (VCF) and the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA).
Recently, for the first time, Bulgaria reintroduced three specimens of the Bearded Vulture, Europe's rarest vulture, as part of a LIFE project. It was the last of the four European vulture species still absent from the Bulgarian skies.
The Balkan Peninsula is seen by experts as a stepping stone to connect populations of the birds in Europe with those in North Africa and Türkiye, which is important for gene flow.
A fragile return
These reintroductions require significant conservation efforts to restore habitats, monitor the birds' development and raise awareness among local communities.
Vultures remain threatened by lack of food, habitat loss, electrocution from power lines and illegal poisoning — one of the greatest conservation challenges. Some stock breeders even poison carcasses to protect their animals from predators like wolves. Vultures are collateral victims in this.
Another LIFE project, called BalkanDetox, aims to strengthen law enforcement, raise awareness among local communities about this illegal practice and improve poison detection.
Some of the vultures released are equipped with sensors that track their geolocation and body position in real time. If the bird's position is abnormal, this allows project members to intervene quickly to treat the bird and locate the suspected feeding site.
The Birds Directive, adopted in 1979, is one of the oldest environmental laws in the EU and protects all birds living in the European Union. Around 500 bird species call Europe home.
Its aim is to halt the decline of species and ensure their long-term prosperity. States must therefore take measures such as banning the hunting of certain species or protecting areas conducive to bird reproduction.
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