Bearded vulture reintroduction to Germany

[DesertRhino150]

The Vulture Conservation Foundation have announced that, as part of their Alpine Bearded Vulture reintroduction project, the first release of young captive-bred bearded vultures into Germany will take place this summer. The birds will be reintroduced to the Bavarian Alps.

Information comes from the Vulture Conservation Foundation's Facebook page:
Facebook

 

[Kifaru Bwana]

This new project has been on the list to come on stream for some years now. Surely, those institutions breeding nearby like Nuernberg and both Berliner Zoos are elated the vulture recovery has finally reached native range too.

Seen this week on photo footage: new chick with young breeding pair at Zoo Berlin.
Berlin Tierpark has a way longer tradition with breeding bearded vultures (the zoo stands at 2 pairs, one older and a new youngish pair at Tierpark).

 

[Jana]

Is this project even needed now? Bearded vulture project in Alps is running for decades, once the population gets more numberous, the species will return to German part on its own.

Actually, maybe it is still too early. German part of the Alps is still only sparsely inhabited by larger carnivores (wolf, lynx, bear) thus vultures probably don´t find enough food without artificial feeding sites. I think lack of large carnivores is main reason why bearded vultures do so poorly in Austria (unlike Italy or France or Switzerland).

 

[Kifaru Bwana]

VCF is planning to connect vulture populations across Europe and while parts of the Alps have good numbers others still need new birds for genetics and population numbers. Massif Central in France and Maestrezgo are stepping stones between Pyrenees and Alps and Andalucia bearde vulture populations.

You are right in thinking there also is a need to expand European carnivore conservation and restore populations by protection or active recovery and release schemes.