“Large Carnivore Connect”: an integrated approach to maintaining large carnivore connectivity in the southwestern Balkans

Large carnivores are an important element of global biodiversity as they provide important ecosystem services and are at the top of the food chain. However, they require large, interconnected habitats in order to thrive. Large carnivores are some of the world’s most admired mammals and, ironically, some of the most imperilled.

The Prespa Ohrid Nature Trust (PONT) focus area is a hotspot for large carnivores in Europe and home to three of the four existing on the European continent, i.e., the brown bear, the grey wolf and the lynx. The area is also home to a recovering golden jackal population. The populations of these four species are spread over the three different countries of Greece, Albania, and North Macedonia.  Due to varying (and often competing) management and conservation priorities in these countries there is no common approach to protecting large carnivores and their habitats, which has resulted in population fragmentation and varying conservation statuses of these species in the region.

The “Large Carnivore Connect” project is an ambitious project supported by PONT and being implemented by the environmental NGO ARCTUROS in Greece, with its associated partners the NGOs “Protection and Preservation of Natural Environment in Albania” in Albania and the “Macedonian Ecological Society” in North Macedonia. The general objective of this 18-month Project (2023-2024) is to maintain the ecological connectivity for large carnivores in the PONT focus area and in effect support their favourable conservation status.

The specific objectives include:

• Identifying important connectivity zones and defining priority conservation measures for large carnivores within the boundaries of the Pindos Prespes-Connectivity Conservation Area and beyond;
• Improving the conservation status of large carnivores in the region;
• Raising awareness for large carnivore connectivity through active participation, education, information spreading and capacity building.

Until now the “Large Carnivore Connect” project has carried out eleven pilot actions. Key results of these actions include, among other:

• Production of biodiversity-related information displayed at the bear and wolf “Conservation Centres” of ARCTUROS;
• Active involvement of volunteers in large carnivore-related activities, through the development of a dedicated “Large Carnivore Volunteer Programme”;
• Participation of young scientists in large carnivore research within the framework of a dedicated “Large Carnivore Summer School”;
• Development of a thematic “Bear” trail.

However, during the implementation of the programme it has become evident the most necessary pilot actions have been the ones that have dealt directly (i.e.: “hands on”) with large carnivores. This is because of the increasing numbers of large carnivores in the project area and the subsequent increase in the number of negative interactions with humans.

From the numerous pilot actions carried out during the “Large Carnivore Connect” Project some stood out as being significantly necessary and effective in dealing with negative human – large carnivore interactions and raising awareness for large carnivores:

1. Provision of technical equipment and adequate training to mitigate negative human-large carnivore interactions:

 In this particular pilot action ARCTUROS provided local shepherds with 5 “Hellenic Shepherd Dogs”; this specific breed of dog is particularly good in protecting herds from attacks from wolves and bears. In addition, the “Emergency Response Team” of ARCTUROS is currently testing and providing bear deterrents to prevent bear damages to human property.

2. Rehabilitation of injured large carnivores in the PONT project area:

Within the framework of this activity the ARCTUROS Rehabilitation team, took care and released back to the wild an injured bear and an injured wolf; both had been hit by cars. The female bear “Glyka” was treated for approximately three weeks and then released back into the wild; the collar used to monitor “Glyka” post-release enabled us to track her for six months, indicating that everything went well. “Sotiris”, the injured wolf, was also hit by a car, unfortunately, more seriously. He had to undergo 4 surgeries and remain in rehabilitation for several months. He was released back to the wild in the summer of 2024, but unfortunately died in August 2024. He was hit again by a car, highlighting the negative effect that transportation routes can have on local wildlife. The fate of these two animals has been widely publicized through the social media of ARCTUROS, thus, helping raise awareness for large carnivores.

As the end of 2024 nears and with it the completion of the “Large Carnivore Connect” project, it will have demonstrated the effectiveness of several pilot actions and based on these results the project will develop an integrated approach in the regional conservation of large carnivores. We hope that this approach will be adopted by the major stakeholders in the area and will ultimately lead to a holistic stewardship of the region that will secure the connectivity and survival of large carnivores, while taking into consideration the involvement and wellbeing of local communities.

By: ARCTUROS