A species of vulture that had been extinct in Romania since after World War II, is currently in the care of an animal protection center in Maros/Mureș county, according to the communiqué of the Milvus Group – Bird and Nature Protection Association.
“The young bird was found in the northern part of the country, in the territory of the Mureș Floodplain Natural Park. The guards at the park were able to capture the exhausted bird. Fortunately, the bird has no signs of injury. The vulture is being kept in a special area where he can recover properly. The species became extinct in Romania at the end of World War II for various reasons, one of them being hunting. The species is necrophagous and thus plays a sanitary role in nature,” the communiqué points out.
The representatives of the association think that the bird could have appeared in Romania from a reservation in Bulgaria or Serbia. “Because its wingspan may reach up to 3 meters, it is capable of flying huge distances in search for food; thus, we think that this young species could have come from Serbia (from a nature reserve named Uvac, known for its significant vulture population) or from Bulgaria, where the Green Balkans Association is making attempts to reintroduce more species of vultures into the wild. We hope that in the near future, there will also be populations of vultures in Romania,” the specialists at the Milvus Group state.
Featured photo: The young, pale vulture at the Milvus Group. Photo: Milvus Group.
