Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Strandzha Nature Park varied forest & beaches; birds & mammals; archae-
ological ruins
hiking & bird-
watching
Jun-Aug
Vitosha Nature Park
mountain trails
hiking, skiing &
snowboarding
Apr-Aug, Dec
& Jan
Vrachanski Balkan
Nature Park
forest, varied tree life & caves
hiking & caving
Jun-Sep
ENDANGERED SPECIES
Bulgaria has one of the largest brown bear populations in Europe. Rough estimates put the
figure at anything from 500 to 1000 individuals. There are thought to be around 300 bears
in the southeastern Rodopis, and about 200 in the Central Balkan National Park. However,
unless you're on a wildlife-spotting tour, you're extremely unlikely to see a bear.
There are thought to be up to 2000 wolves in
the country, while numbers of the critically en-
dangered Eurasian lynx are uncertain. Again,
you'll be very lucky to see these animals in the
wild.
Rare insects include the Bulgarian emerald
dragonfly, discovered only in 1999. It is thought only to inhabit a small area of the Eastern
Rodopi mountains and neighbouring areas of Greece and Turkey.
Various species of rare bird, including Egyptian vultures, lesser kestrels and great eagle
owls, are protected in the Rusenski Lom Nature Park, while small cormorants, Ferrugin-
ous ducks and Dalmatian pelicans thrive in the Srebârna Nature Reserve. The imperial
eagle is one of Bulgaria's most threatened birds - only around 30 pairs are believed to ex-
ist in the wild today. Saker falcons have been brought close to extinction in Bulgaria due
to the illegal falconry trade and egg collectors; there are thought to be only 10 breeding
pairs remaining.
Visit
www.bulgariannationalparks.org
for compre-
hensive information on Bulgaria's three national
parks.
DANCING BEARS
The cruel practice of 'dancing' bears was officially banned in Bulgaria in 1993, and rescued bears now live in the
Dancing Bears Park
(
www.vier-pfoten.bg
)
in Belitsa, in the Rila Mountains. Located around 33km northeast of
