site.btaFirst Egyptian Vulture Back to Bulgaria from Its Overwintering Grounds

The first Egyptian vulture has returned to Bulgaria Tuesday morning from its overwintering grounds, the Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds (BSPB) reported on its official website. The bird, named Zara, was hatched and raised at the Wildlife Rescue Center of the Green Balkans organization.

She was released into the wild by BSPB in 2020 as part of a program to reinforce the species in Bulgaria. Since then, the female vulture has lived freely in the wild. Zara’s life has been closely monitored via a GPS tracker. She has successfully formed a pair in the wild and has already raised chicks twice. Interestingly, last year she was also the first Egyptian vulture to return to Bulgaria, although she arrived five days later, on March 15, BSPB said.

Egyptian vultures typically return to Bulgaria after March 20, with the arrival of astronomical spring and Zara "seems eager to get home", to use the words of BSPB. During her spring migration, she traveled nearly 4,000 kilometers in 24 days, moving from Sudan to Bulgaria.

The Egyptian vulture is the most endangered vulture species in Europe. Today, only about 55 pairs nest on the Balkan Peninsula, approximately 35 of which are in Bulgaria, making the country the most important place in the region for the conservation of this globally threatened species, BSPB says.