Bulgaria

For further details, please see this article from WolfPrint issue 27.

Over the years a total of £7,000 has been donated by the UK Wolf Conservation Trust to Balkani Wildlife Society in Bulgaria £3,500 of which they will be using for the development of a Wolf Action Plan.

European Wolves (Canis lupus lupus) and Brown Bears (Ursus arctos) in Bulgaria
On 3 May 2007, Balkani Wildlife Society will open their newly built Large Carnivore Education Centre in the village of Vlahi, set in the foothills of the Pirin Mountains, Bulgaria.

The new centre is the culmination of many years work by Elena Tsingarska and her project team on large carnivore research and education. Her husband, Sider Sedechev, runs partner organisation BBPS Semperviva, which aims to revive the ancient Karakachan breeds of sheep, horses and guarding dogs. Large predators continue to receive bad press in Bulgaria, and wolves still have a bounty on their heads equivalent to two week’s wages. Dispelling myths and misconceptions about wolves especially is therefore hugely important in Bulgaria.

The two organisations work very closely together at their base in Vlahi. A few years ago, a project house was built in the traditional Bulgarian style which provides shelter for the various animals such as sheep, goats and horses in a barn area adjoining the house. The living accommodation provides basic but comfortable facilities for project workers, volunteers and visitors.

Life is hard in Vlahi, but also rewarding and great fun. Each day is filled with the hustle and bustle of rearing livestock, training livestock guarding dogs, carrying out research on wolves and bears, and providing education and awareness raising activities. Every morning, the sheep and goats are taken up to pasture in the mountains, with bells clanking and lots of bleating, accompanied by one of the shepherds and at least three livestock guarding dogs. Amidst all of this, the team have to cater for volunteers and visitors, and look after a small family of their own.

It has been the dream of Elena and Sider to change attitudes and behaviours on as big a scale as they can. The new Large Carnivore Education Centre will go a long way to providing this, with excellent facilities for the team to raise awareness about wolves, bears and other large predators in a natural setting. Vlahi is the gateway to the Pirin National Park, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The village itself was, until recently, largely derelict, having been overlooked and forgotten under the previous communist party. The project is breathing new life into the village, and as well as the Education Centre and the project house, another large barn has been built to house some of the goats and sheep.

Employment for local shepherds, and craftspeople, is also boosting the local economy. Products from the sheep’s wool such as chunky jumpers, mittens, scarves and hats are proving very popular. In turn this has revived production of some of the other local products made by craftspeople which were in danger of dying out. Jewellery, lace and linen products are all sold at the project.

BWS currently has one European wolf and one brown bear which, like our own wolves, are used as ambassadors for their species. Vucho, the ambassador European wolf has already made a couple of appearances in Wolf Print, and Medo, the brown bear, joined the project last year. Medo is a rescued bear who spent a year in Sofia Zoo whilst his new enclosure was being built. He has also featured in a recent article in Wolf Print.

The UKWCT has supported the project over the past few years by providing much needed funds to purchase livestock guarding dogs, as well as funding research and equipment.

Recently, the UKWCT also managed to secure an additional £10,000 donation from Bacardi who were looking for a European wolf conservation project to support following the launch of their new brand of Eristoff vodka.
The UKWCT will continue to support BWS on a long term basis, and we will keep you updated of progress.We are also hoping to organise wildlife and photography tours to Bulgaria, which will include visits to the new Centre.

We will report on the opening of the new Large Carnivore Education Centre in the Summer edition of Wolf Print, hopefully with lots of great photos of Vucho, Medo and, of course, the new centre itself.