He was hatched in the Belgrade’s Zoo garden and we wanted to give him the chance to be free. It was planned to be one of the first Griffon Vultures released on Stara Planina in 2016, in the program of returning the Vultures on this mountain. That is why he got name Piroćanac. The program was not then supported by the state administration, and Piroćanac remained in the zoo for two years. At the beginning of June 2018, during the organization of the program of satellite tracking and monitoring, the transfer of Piroćanac to Uvac was stopped due to unreasonable administrative requirements. With the support of the Ministry of Environmental Protection, the bird got the necessary documents and he was transferred to Uvac with a big delay in the middle of August. We equipped him with a satellite transmitter and released on the Uvac, along with two other Zlatar and Marija mts, on the 1.9.2018. ( GPS tracking … » ), where are the best conditions for him to integrate with other Vultures. There was no point in postponing the release, because the other two birds from the cages were ready, so the Piroccanac would remain alone in the cage. There was also a winter period coming, when Vultures are under pressure to survive. Unfortunately, there was not enough time to adjust and integrate with the other two birds in cage. By satellite tracking and video surveillance on the feed place, we saw that he did not integrate into a flock of Vultures and we wanted to get him back to the cage. The Rangers of the Uvac Reserve were doing their best, but the Pirocanac was elusive. At one point he went to Mileševka and Pašter, which gave us hope that he would succeed. The Vultures from Uvac often visit because there are plenty of cattle and potential food.
When the Rangers found him, he was exhausted, and according to the procedure, he was immediately taken by the veterinarian, who found that the bird was good, that he needed ti eat, and that he would recover quickly, so he was returned to the cage. The bird was not hospitalized at that time and in such a bad condition he was returned to the cage of the Uvac Reserve. Unfortunately, this was obviously not a good estimate. The Piroćanac died in the Center at Uvac, although he accepted some food.
This is the third case that a Vultures are dead in this way. We hope that this bad experience will help to resolve the issue of veterinarians and hospitalization of endangered bird species, so that these unnecessary losses will not occur again.
Zlatar and Maria mts behave well. They are moving and visiting the territory. They were recorded several times in the feeding place by satellite tracking, as well as video surveillance. Satellite tracking he discovered the new potential site for nesting Vultures that we will soon visit. We wish them luck in the coming winter period.