People at PPNEA (Preservation and Protection of Natural Environment in Albania), a NGO and partner of EuroNatur in Albania, are delighted: for the first time and by means of a hidden trail camera, the Albanian conservationists succeeded in capturing pictures of wolves and bears in the Shebenik Mountains on the border of Macedonia.
Up to now, the only hints for the existence of wolves and bears in the area were animal tracks in the snow, tufts of hair and padded animals. Now, the pictures do not only provide evidence of their existence, but in addition are the first photographic proof of wolves and bears in Albania. The use of hidden trail cameras in the Shebenik Mountains is an important part of the “Balkan Lynx Recovery Programme“, a project implemented by EuroNatur together with its partners KORA (Coordinated research projects for the conservation and management of carnivores in Switzerland), PPNEA and MES (Macedonian Ecological Society).
"The evidence of bears and wolves makes us guess that the endangered Balkan lynx might also exist in this area, as all three species live in a similar habitat", says Annette Spangenberg, project leader at EuroNatur. "We are therefore hopeful to have the picture of a lynx next time the camera shots are being evaluated."