PONT REGIONS

The Prespa–Ohrid region

The Prespa-Ohrid region lies at the heart of the Balkans. Covering parts of Albania, Greece, and North Macedonia, the lakes are among Europe’s oldest and recognized as one of the most ecologically valuable regions in Europe. This widely recognised transboundary area houses multiple protected areas, internationally recognised wetland areas (Ramsar sites), a transboundary UNESCO Biosphere Reserve and a transboundary mixed Natural and Cultural UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The work of PONT initially focused on the Prespa Lakes and their surrounding environment, including the entire Galicica National Park and Pelister National Park in North Macedonia which extend outside the watershed of the Prespa Lakes. PONT is expanding its work beyond the wider Prespa region by adding the wider Ohrid region and other transboundary conservation areas in both North Macedonia and Albania. The wider Prespa-Ohrid region also includes Shebenik National Park in Albania which sits outside the watershed of Lake Ohrid.

The following existing protected areas are included for financial support by PONT in the Wider Prespa-Ohrid region: Ezerani Nature Park; Galicica National Park; Lake Prespa Monument of Nature; Pelister National Park; Prespa National Park; Pogradec Terrestrial/Aquatic Territory Protected Landscape; Shebenik National Park; Vevchani Springs Monument of Nature.

Grants to environmental actors are for qualified NGOs, municipalities, and research institutes in the Wider Prespa-Ohrid region and with a strategy in conservation, developing society, improving communities, and promoting citizen participation in conservation. PONT funding priorities identified for environmental actors are mainly focused on (transboundary) conservation activities and some important specialised conservation activities.

Prespa

Prespa refers to two freshwater lakes—the Great Prespa, shared by Albania, Greece and North Macedonia and the Lesser Prespa divided by Greece and Albania.

Together with their surrounding mountains the two Prespa lakes constitute an area which is one of the most biodiverse areas in Europe.

Prespa Biodiversity

Some numbers below illustrate the wealth and the diversity of the area:

The Prespa basin has a very high level of endemism score with endemic forms of lacustrine organisms, mainly gastropods, diatoms, oligochaeta, leeches, poriferans, tricladids, ostracods.
With 23 species of freshwater fish, 9 of which are endemic to the Prespa region makes Prespa one of the 10 most important wetlands in the Mediterranean and one of the 12 most important wetlands in Europe in terms of fish endemism.
The Prespa lakes are a wetland of international importance (Ramsar wetland). Over 272 species of birds, including 143 breeding are found in the area. Lesser Prespa is the home of the largest breeding population of Dalmatian pelicans (Pelecanus crispus) in the world with 1150-1530 pairs, (20% of its global population) and an isolated colony, the westernmost in the Palearctic, of great white pelicans (Pelecanus onocrotalus, 300-500 p.).

There is also an important population of pygmy cormorants (Phalacrocoraxpygmaeus), one of the four isolated genetically distinct populations in Europe of goosander (Mergus merganser), relicts of glacial eras, and other important water-bird species, such as the glossy ibis and 6 species of herons.

With 172 species of diurnal butterflies the Prespa catchment basin is one of the 10 most diverse places for Lepidoptera diversity in Europe.
62 mammal species, including the threatened species of wolf, brown bear and otter all finding refuge within the basin. Prespa also hosts one of the highest bat diversities in Europe
Exceptional floristic diversity with over 2,200 species of plants.
Great variety of habitat types: 53 habitat types listed in the EU Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC), including 9 priority terrestrial habitats.

Ohrid

Lake Ohrid is located on the central Balkan with approximately two-third of its surface area belonging to North Macedonia and about one-third belonging to Albania. It is an ancient lake that exists continuously following its formation during the Pliocene, and is one of the oldest lakes in the world. It is also the deepest lake in the entire Balkan Peninsula, with a maximum depth of 289 m.

Lake Ohrid is a renowned centre of biodiversity for freshwater aquatic species due to its exceptionally high level of endemism. It is much smaller than lakes such as Baikal, Tanganyika and Victoria but hosts a high number of endemic species and is possibly the most diverse lake per surface area in the world. Lake Ohrid represents a refuge for numerous freshwater organisms from the Tertiary Period, whose close relatives can be found only as fossil remains; this is the reason the lake is sometimes called a “museum of living fossils”. Among them the freshwater sponge (Ochridospongia rotunda).

Ohrid Biodiversity

The significant biodiversity values of Lake Ohrid, indicatively include:

Approximately 1,200 native species are known from the lake, including 586 animals.
212 known endemic species including 182 animals in a lake with a surface area of 358 km2 and mean water depth of 155 m. Εndemism is high in invertebrates with benthic and semi-benthic taxa being particularly diverse. Indicatively:
- Amphipoda 90%, Infusoria 88%, Rhabdocoela 44%, Tricladida 71%, Isopoda 76%, Gastropoda 78%, Ostracoda 63%.
Ohrid is one of the 12 most important wetlands in Europe in terms of fish endemism, with the presence of 17 species of freshwater fish, including the famous Ohrid Trout (Salmo letnica) as well as 9-11 local or regional endemics.
The lakeshore reed beds and wetlands provide critical habitat for tens of thousands of wintering water birds, including rare and threatened species such as the ferruginous duck (Aythya ferina), and velvet scooter (Melanitta fusca). As the number of overwintering birds regularly exceeds 20,000 birds, Lake Ohrid has been added to the Ramsar list in 2021.

The Korab-Shara region

The Korab-Shara region covers parts of Albania and North Macedonia and is located at the border with Kosovo. The rugged high mountains are recognized as an ecologically valuable region in Europe. This widely recognised transboundary area houses multiple protected areas.

The work of PONT in this region started in 2022.

The following existing protected areas are included for financial support by PONT in the region: Korab-Koritnik Nature Park; Shar Mountain National Park and Mavrovo National Park.

Grants to environmental actors are for qualified NGOs, municipalities, and research institutes in the Korab-Shara region and with a strategy in conservation, developing society, improving communities, and promoting citizen participation in conservation. PONT funding priorities identified for environmental actors are mainly focused on (transboundary) conservation activities and some important specialised conservation activities.

Korab-Koritnik

The mountains along the Albanian border with North Macedonia and Kosovo are protected in the Korab-Koritnik Nature Park

Shara

The newly established Shar Mountain National Park in North Macedonia lies on the borders with Kosovo

Mavrovo

Mavrovo is one of the oldest parks in North Macedonia, bordering both Albania and Kosovo.

The Albanian Alps region

The Albanian Alps National Park in Albania is located at the borders of Montenegro and Kosovo. The rugged high mountains are internationally recognized for its natural beauty.

The work of PONT in this region started in 2022.

Grants to environmental actors are for qualified NGOs, municipalities, and research institutes in the Albanian Alps region and with a strategy in conservation, developing society, improving communities, and promoting citizen participation in conservation. PONT funding priorities identified for environmental actors are mainly focused on (transboundary) conservation activities and some important specialised conservation activities.

Connnectivity Conservation Areas

The IUCN Best Practice Guidelines for Conserving Connectivity Through Ecological Networks and Corridors, defines an ecological corridor as “a clearly defined geographical space that is governed and managed over the long term to maintain or restore effective ecological connectivity”.

The areas which provide ways to identify, maintain, enhance, and restore ecological connectivity are called Connectivity Conservation Areas (CCAs) or ecological corridors. Ecological corridors are not a substitute for protected areas but complement them, especially in regions where additional protected areas are not possible, and/or connectivity is required to support biodiversity and ecological processes of the existing protected areas. Ecological corridors facilitate adaptation to changing environmental conditions, such as climate change. The ecological corridors and the protected areas they connect make up an ecological network.

Connectivity corridors are usually large landscapes with complex matrix of land tenures and activities that need to be actively managed if they are to be effective. Connectivity conservation management aims at enabling species and their ecosystems to move or adapt to changing conditions by restoring, maintaining, and enhancing the links between habitats across whole landscapes. Wildlife in the main habitat patches communicate through established and uninterrupted corridors in the PONT Focus Region.

The PONT Focus Region has been identified as strategically important for maintaining ecological connectivity along the Pindus Mountains mixed forests ecoregion and further north towards the Dinaric Mountains mixed forests ecoregion. Based on expert studies, six CCAs – 3 in Albania, 2 in North Macedonia, and one in North-Western Greece – were proposed in the PONT Focus Region with a total 1,26 Mio hectares.

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REGION - Prespa Ohrid Nature Trust