nature conservation
convinced that their activities have to be limited or even banned. Authorities often turn a blind eye towards the illegal construction of hunting blinds, the dumping of waste and even poaching. These activities disturb the birds and habitats even within the boundaries of the National Parks. Needless to say, during the hunting season, any bird that stretches out as much as a wingtip beyond the core protected area is immediately blasted to kingdom come. All these issues are rooted in one overriding problem – the lack of recognition of the importance of Greece’s natural heritage in general and that of the north-east in particular. It is very illustrative that until 1981, there was no bird field guide in the Greek language and that the Hellenic Bird Society was only established in the following year. (The Greeks, though, were six years ahead of their Bulgarian neighbours in establishing a national bird society). There was simply not enough interest to warrant the publication of such a book. Therefore, conservation organisations are keen on creating public interest in these sites – public interest from within the region, but also from other parts of Greece and beyond. Several ecotourism projects have been set up, with the ecotourism centre of Dadia as the successful forerunner. Ecotourism – that means you – is one of the trump cards of nature conservation in the region, both in Greece and Bulgaria. It gives value to nature, economically by generating income for the local communities and ethically and culturally by showing that nature has an intrinsic value – a value that is great enough to draw visitors from all over Europe to the region. On page 224 you can see what you can do to support conservation of the area.
landscape
59 The Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds (BSPB) has several programs to preserve the threatened Egyptian Vulture in the Rhodopes. The highest concentration of this beautiful bird is in the Madzharovo region.