On 10 January 2026, alarming data were received from the tracking transmitters of two of the birds. Our team immediately responded on site, and on 11 January 2026 two dead Cinereous Vultures, part of the programme for the restoration of the species in Bulgaria, were found. A report was filed with the Kotel Police Department, and teams from the Wildlife Rescue Centre of Green Balkans, as well as the Sector “Crimes against the Environment, Wildlife and Animals” of the General Directorate of National Police, arrived at the scene.
The team of the General Directorate of National Police collected evidence on site and drew up an official report. Probable poisoned baits were also identified – parts of sheep and horse carcasses. A pre-trial investigation has been initiated. Later, two more Black Vulture carcasses and one Griffon Vulture carcass were found, bringing the confirmed number of poisoning victims to five. A team from the Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds (BSPB), together with a specially trained poison-detection dog, also responded on site.
The team of the Wildlife Rescue Centre transported the carcasses to the city of Stara Zagora, where autopsies will be carried out with the participation of experts from Trakia University in order to determine the cause of poisoning and the type of illegal substance used.
“This is the second case of poison use in the area, after four other Black Vultures were poisoned here in 2022,” said Emilian Stoynov from the team of the Fund for Wild Flora and Fauna – an organisation that has been working for nearly 30 years on the restoration of the species in the region.
“The dead birds were equipped with transmitters, and it is very likely that there are other poisoned birds that we are simply unable to find,” Stoynov added.
The dead birds were named Igor, Resni, Eneva and Musala. One of them was named by a donor who provided the funds for its tagging and transmitter. Another was named after Miroslav Enev from the “Kartalsko Gnezdo” Foundation, who, together with his team, built dozens of nests to support the return of the species in Bulgaria. Three of the birds were donated to Bulgaria by Spain for the purposes of the species’ restoration in the country. The Griffon Vulture is a donation to our country from Allwetterzoo Münster, Germany.
Released in the areas of Kresna and Kotel, the four birds were part of the hope for the return of the species to Bulgaria. Igor and Eneva had formed a pair, and their nesting was eagerly anticipated. The vulture Eneva was one of the first Black Vulture chicks hatched in Bulgaria – one of the birds expected to be among the first native-born individuals to breed in the country. Thanks to nearly 30 years of systematic work by civil society organisations in Bulgaria, the species returned to the country after almost 50 years of absence.
Currently, around 18 breeding pairs nest in Bulgaria, following the species’ return in 2021. In the Sliven–Kotel region, 6–7 pairs breed, which in 2025 raised a record number of chicks – three. The Black Vulture also breeds in the Vratsa region, where there are 6–7 pairs, and this year there is evidence of nesting in the Eastern Rhodopes and the Sakar Mountains.
The Cinereous Vulture is a globally endangered species with enormous benefits for nature and society.
“We will do everything in our power to ensure that this time the perpetrator receives an effective sentence,” said Ivelin Ivanov from Green Balkans, head of the project for the restoration of the species in Bulgaria.
We remind that the use of poisons in the wild is a criminal offence under the Penal Code and poses a serious threat to both nature and people. “This time, rare birds have suffered – birds whose return to Bulgaria was supported by a large international community. But sooner or later, these poisons will also affect people,” representatives of Green Balkans warn.
The Fund for Wild Flora and Fauna and Green Balkans call on all citizens to help publicise the case and to take a strong civic stance in defence of Bulgarian nature and the efforts to protect it.
For further information:
Ivelin Ivanov – Green Balkans, mobile: +359 887 574 699
Emilian Stoynov – Fund for Wild Flora and Fauna, mobile: +359 878 573 841
