Bison Rewilding in the Southern Carpathians
Solveig Tronsgaard Rasmussen
Summary
Covering around 200,000 km2, the Carpathian Mountains make up Europe’s biggest mountain chain, which is shared by seven countries. It is a Natura 2000 site and a biodiversity hotspot housing several megafaunal species such as brown bear and wolf. The Carpathians have experienced severe exploitation of natural resources, but due to the region’s remoteness, they remained relatively undegraded. When the Iron Curtain fell in 1989, the Carpathian countries experienced considerable socioeconomical and political change, which ultimately led to the abandonment of 15-20% of Carpathian cropland. Land abandonment provides rewilding opportunities and since 2014, Rewilding Europe and WWF Romania have released European bison (Bison bonasus) in the Romanian Carpathians. The bison went extinct in the wild in 1927, and its reintroduction is expected to restore important ecological functions. The local community is generally in favour of the project. Various initiatives are in place to minimise human-bison conflict, and the locals have been extensively engaged. Furthermore, bison can make rural areas more attractive by supporting nature-based businesses such as ecotourism. Crop damage may be the biggest challenge facing the project, but with compensation and dialogue, bison rewilding in the Southern Carpathians is likely to be successful.
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ecological genealogy
The Carpathian Mountains make up Europe’s biggest mountain chain. They cover an area of around 200,000 km2, which is shared by seven countries (UNEP, 2007). Severe exploitation of natural resources has taken place here since the eighteenth century (WWF, 2019a), and the relationship between wildlife and humans has been strained. In 1955 the Romanian government led an effort to reduce the number of wolves (Canis lupus) to protect livestock, and within twelve years the wolf population dropped from 4,000 to 1,500 individuals (WWF, 2019b). The number of brown bears (Ursus arctos) in the Romanian Carpathians has fluctuated throughout the 20th century (Okarma et al., 2000; Slobodyan, 1976), and today some rural villagers regulate them illegally with homemade poisons (Dale-Harris, 2017). The force exerting the heaviest pressure on the Carpathian environment was four decades of communism, which was an era of intense deforestation, agriculture and mining (UNEP, 2007). Due to the inaccessibility of the area, however, the agricultural practice was less intense here than in other regions of the Soviet Union, and the Carpathian forests were not as damaged as in Western Europe (WWF, 2019a). When the Iron Curtain fell in 1989, the Carpathian countries experienced considerable socioeconomical and political change (Hostert, Kuemmerle, Radeloff, & Müller, 2008). The transition from centrally-planned to free-market economy and privatisation of property came with a sharp decline in GDP as the countries had to adapt to new trade conditions (UNEP, 2007). This resulted in the abandonment of approximately 15-20% of cropland in all Carpathian countries (Hostert et al., 2008).
Abandonment of rural areas offers opportunities for rewilding (Corlett, 2016). Rewilding is a relatively new concept that entered the ecological vocabulary around 25 years ago. The European version is centred around returning managed areas to a wilder state with minimal human intervention. The (re)introduction of megafauna and creating large coherent wilderness areas are often emphasised (Corlett, 2016). Trophic rewilding is a distinct type of rewilding defined as “species introductions to restore top-down trophic interactions and associated trophic cascades to promote self-regulating biodiverse ecosystems” (Svenning et al., 2016). It has been applied in Europe through introductions of herbivorous megafauna as ecological replacement of extinct grazers. Konik horses and highland cattle have been released in several locations as ecological replacements of Eurasian wild horse and auroch, respectively, and the European bison is also a popular choice. As the latter includes bark in its diet, Cromsigt et al. (2017) suggested that it would be more valuable for preservation of open areas (Cromsigt, Kemp, Rodriguez, & Kivit, 2018).
The European bison (Bison bonasus) has been in Europe since Early Holocene about 10,000 years ago, and by the end of the epoch, its range comprised most of the continent (Benecke, 2005). It experienced pronounced environmental change stemming in part from forest expansion in Early Holocene and in part from later deforestation. From 7,500 years ago, human population growth, hunting and agricultural activities added an extra dimension to the pressure exerted on the bison (Bocherens, Hofman-Kamińska, Drucker, Schmölcke, & Kowalczyk, 2015). Hence, the wild populations gradually disappeared from Europe, and the last wild European bison died in 1927 due to poaching (Vlasakker, 2014). The species was saved from complete extinction through a successful breeding program based on the remaining 54 individuals kept in captivity (Kuemmerle et al., 2010). The first reintroduction of European bison took place in 1952 in Białowieza Forest on the border between Poland and Belarus (Vlasakker, 2014). Much effort is allocated to the establishment of bison populations, as it can be considered both an umbrella and a keystone species; its presence supports other species, and it affects soil nutrient concentrations and distributions (Vlasakker, 2014).
Abandonment of rural areas offers opportunities for rewilding (Corlett, 2016). Rewilding is a relatively new concept that entered the ecological vocabulary around 25 years ago. The European version is centred around returning managed areas to a wilder state with minimal human intervention. The (re)introduction of megafauna and creating large coherent wilderness areas are often emphasised (Corlett, 2016). Trophic rewilding is a distinct type of rewilding defined as “species introductions to restore top-down trophic interactions and associated trophic cascades to promote self-regulating biodiverse ecosystems” (Svenning et al., 2016). It has been applied in Europe through introductions of herbivorous megafauna as ecological replacement of extinct grazers. Konik horses and highland cattle have been released in several locations as ecological replacements of Eurasian wild horse and auroch, respectively, and the European bison is also a popular choice. As the latter includes bark in its diet, Cromsigt et al. (2017) suggested that it would be more valuable for preservation of open areas (Cromsigt, Kemp, Rodriguez, & Kivit, 2018).
The European bison (Bison bonasus) has been in Europe since Early Holocene about 10,000 years ago, and by the end of the epoch, its range comprised most of the continent (Benecke, 2005). It experienced pronounced environmental change stemming in part from forest expansion in Early Holocene and in part from later deforestation. From 7,500 years ago, human population growth, hunting and agricultural activities added an extra dimension to the pressure exerted on the bison (Bocherens, Hofman-Kamińska, Drucker, Schmölcke, & Kowalczyk, 2015). Hence, the wild populations gradually disappeared from Europe, and the last wild European bison died in 1927 due to poaching (Vlasakker, 2014). The species was saved from complete extinction through a successful breeding program based on the remaining 54 individuals kept in captivity (Kuemmerle et al., 2010). The first reintroduction of European bison took place in 1952 in Białowieza Forest on the border between Poland and Belarus (Vlasakker, 2014). Much effort is allocated to the establishment of bison populations, as it can be considered both an umbrella and a keystone species; its presence supports other species, and it affects soil nutrient concentrations and distributions (Vlasakker, 2014).
present tense
Today, all the Carpathians countries have gained EU membership except Ukraine and Serbia (European Union, 2019), and they have generally enjoyed a positive development in economy and employment rates (UNEP, 2007). In spite of being the most heavily pressured European mountain range (UNEP, 2007), the Carpathian Mountains hold one of the least disturbed ecosystems in Europe (Ruffini, Streifeneder, & Eiselt, 2006) and are classified as a biodiversity hotspot (Hostert et al., 2008). Over half of the European wolf, bear and lynx populations are found here (WWF, 2019a), as well as 30% of European plant species (Ruffini et al., 2006), and the extent of old-growth forests is second only to Russia. Furthermore, the Carpathians function as an important corridor between the forest ranges in the north, west and south, facilitating animal migration and plant dispersal across Europe (WWF, 2019a).
The Carpathian Mountains are a Natura 2000 site (Rewilding Europe, 2019). Natura 2000 is the world’s largest network of protected areas, amounting to 18% of EU’s total land area (European Commission, 2019). It applies to EU members, while the equivalent Pan-European Emerald Network is for non-EU countries, and collectively, they constitute an initiative to unite the European conservation effort for habitats and species, especially those that are endangered and/or endemic (European Environment Agency, 2019). They are a response to the Bern Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats, a treaty which EU and 50 countries have signed (Council of Europe, 2019). It is legally binding, and each Contracting Party is obligated to promote education, research and national policies on conservation and to consider the natural environment in planning and development. Appendix III of the Bern Convention lists the protected fauna species, in which European bison figures (Council of Europe, 1979).
The Carpathian Mountains are a Natura 2000 site (Rewilding Europe, 2019). Natura 2000 is the world’s largest network of protected areas, amounting to 18% of EU’s total land area (European Commission, 2019). It applies to EU members, while the equivalent Pan-European Emerald Network is for non-EU countries, and collectively, they constitute an initiative to unite the European conservation effort for habitats and species, especially those that are endangered and/or endemic (European Environment Agency, 2019). They are a response to the Bern Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats, a treaty which EU and 50 countries have signed (Council of Europe, 2019). It is legally binding, and each Contracting Party is obligated to promote education, research and national policies on conservation and to consider the natural environment in planning and development. Appendix III of the Bern Convention lists the protected fauna species, in which European bison figures (Council of Europe, 1979).
Almost half of the Carpathian Mountains are situated in Romania (UNEP, 2007). The European bison populations went extinct here approximately 200 years ago (Vlasakker, 2014). The Romanian Carpathians have the lowest human population density of the mountain range; in 2007, there were less than 100 inhabitants per km2 (UNEP, 2007). This is one of the traits that make it optimal for bison, as they favour areas with little human presence (Kuemmerle et al., 2010). So far, a total of four bison releases have taken place in the Tarçu Mountains in the Southern Carpathians rewilding area: 17 individuals in 2014, 14 in 2015, 10 in 2016 and 9 individuals in 2017. They were handled by the independent foundations, Rewilding Europe and WWF Romania, and were part of LIFE Bison’s project to restore the Romanian populations (LIFE Bison, 2019). These organisations will continue to bring bison to the Southern Carpathians with the goal of obtaining a viable population of minimum 300 individuals by 2024 (Rewilding Europe, 2019). The Southern Carpathians thus contribute to the recovery of European bison that now numbers 7000 individuals (Rewilding Europe, 2018).
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The Tarçu Mountains rewilding area holds 22,000 inhabitants (Vasile, 2018), and in other projects, the relationship between bison and the local community can be strained, mainly due to crop and forestry damage (Vlasakker, 2014). Therefore, Rewilding Europe has made efforts to minimise human-bison conflict in the Southern Carpathians. These include training of local bison rangers, multiple education and outreach programs and an investment fund for nature-friendly entrepreneurs. The area is an increasingly attractive ecotourism destination, thus allowing economic development and nature to support each other and create more job opportunities in rural regions (Vlasakker, 2014). Vasile (2018) examined the attitude towards bison in the Romanian Carpathians among 131 locals. The majority (n=90) agreed with the rewilding project, and economic benefits was the primary reason. Of the 34 interviewees who disagreed, almost half stated anticipated damage to e.g. crops as the rationale. Overall, people expressed a positive attitude towards the bison and considered it both beautiful and suitable for the Southern Carpathians (Vasile, 2018).
future trajectories
While Rewilding Europe and WWF Romania lead the project, the local community has been extensively engaged. This makes them take ownership of the project, and it likely encourages more knowledge and enthusiasm about the animals than if they had been left out. Economic benefit is another part of people’s generally positive attitude towards the bison. Romania has experienced economic growth especially since joining EU, but poverty remains a problem and people move away from rural areas because the agricultural output is not sufficient. Ecotourism and other nature-related businesses thus offer a welcome source of income, and they can make rural areas more attractive. Finally, the European bison likely benefits from its charismatic bearing; it resembles cattle and being a herbivore, it is not as intimidating as e.g. the wolf.
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Crop damage is likely to increase with bison population size, however, especially during winter when food is scarce. I think this is the biggest challenge facing the rewilding project. Adequate compensation is a potential solution but maintaining a healthy dialogue with the local community will probably have a greater effect, particularly in the long run. Thus far, the Southern Carpathians represent a positive example of human and wildlife coexistence and an important new attitude towards wild nature. With a growing population of European bison and a favourable public opinion, I believe the rewilding project has a good foundation for success.
References
Benecke, N. (2005). The Holocene distribution of European bison - the archaeozoological record. Munibe (Antropologia-Arkeologia)(57), 421-428.
Bocherens, H., Hofman-Kamińska, E., Drucker, D. G., Schmölcke, U., & Kowalczyk, R. (2015). European Bison as a Refugee Species? Evidence from Isotopic Data on Early Holocene Bison and Other Large Herbivores in Northern Europe. PLOS ONE, 10(2), e0115090. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0115090
Corlett, R. T. (2016). Restoration, Reintroduction, and Rewilding in a Changing World. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 31(6), 453-462. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2016.02.017
Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats, (1979).
Council of Europe. (2019). Bern Convention: Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats. Retrieved from https://www.coe.int/en/web/bern-convention/presentation
Cromsigt, J. P. G. M., Kemp, Y. J. M., Rodriguez, E., & Kivit, H. (2018). Rewilding Europe's large grazer community: how functionally diverse are the diets of European bison, cattle, and horses? Restoration Ecology, 26(5), 891-899. doi:10.1111/rec.12661
Dale-Harris, L. (2017). How the brown bear became public enemy number one in rural Romania. The Guardian. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/nov/22/how-the-brown-bear-became-public-enemy-number-one-in-rural-romania
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Hostert, P., Kuemmerle, T., Radeloff, V., & Müller, D. (2008). Post-socialist land-use and land-cover change in the Carpathian Mountains.
Kuemmerle, T., Perzanowski, K., Chaskovskyy, O., Ostapowicz, K., Halada, L., Bashta, A.-T., . . . Radeloff, V. C. (2010). European Bison habitat in the Carpathian Mountains. Biological Conservation, 143(4), 908-916. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2009.12.038
LIFE Bison. (2019). LIFE Bison: Urgent actions for the recovery of European Bison populations in Romania. Retrieved from https://life-bison.com/life-bison/
Okarma, H., Dovhanych, Y., Findo, S., Ionescu, O., Koubek, P., & Szemethy, L. (2000). Status of Carnivores in the Carpathian Ecoregion. Retrieved from http://www2.nina.no/lcie_new/pdf/635012245140517288_Okarma%20WWF%20Status%20of%20LCs%20in%20Carpathians.pdf
Rewilding Europe. (2018). Pioneering study sheds new light on bison ecology and grazing communities. Retrieved from https://rewildingeurope.com/news/pioneering-study-sheds-new-light-on-bison-ecology-and-grazing-communities/
Rewilding Europe. (2019). Southern Carpathians: A wilderness arc at the heart of Europe. Retrieved from https://rewildingeurope.com/areas/southern-carpathians/
Ruffini, F. V., Streifeneder, T., & Eiselt, B. (2006). Implementing an international mountain convention - An aproach for the delimitation of the Carpathian Convention area.
Slobodyan, A. A. (1976). The European Brown Bear in the Carpathians. Bears: Their Biology and Management, 3, 313-319. doi:10.2307/3872781
Svenning, J.-C., Pedersen, P. B. M., Donlan, C. J., Ejrnæs, R., Faurby, S., Galetti, M., . . . Vera, F. W. M. (2016). Science for a wilder Anthropocene: Synthesis and future directions for trophic rewilding research. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 113(4), 898. doi:10.1073/pnas.1502556112
UNEP. (2007). Carpathians Environment Outlook. Retrieved from https://www.unenvironment.org/resources/report/carpathians-environment-outlook-2007
Vasile, M. (2018). The Vulnerable Bison: Practices and Meanings of Rewilding in the Romanian Carpathians (Vol. 16).
Vlasakker, J. v. d. (2014). Rewilding Europe Bison Rewilding Plan, 2014-2024. Retrieved from Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
WWF. (2019a). The Carpathians. Retrieved from http://wwf.panda.org/knowledge_hub/where_we_work/black_sea_basin/danube_carpathian/our_solutions/wilderness_protected_areas/carpathians/
WWF. (2019b). Endangered Species in the Carpathian Mountains. Retrieved from http://wwf.panda.org/knowledge_hub/where_we_work/black_sea_basin/danube_carpathian/our_solutions/wilderness_protected_areas/carpathians/species/
Bocherens, H., Hofman-Kamińska, E., Drucker, D. G., Schmölcke, U., & Kowalczyk, R. (2015). European Bison as a Refugee Species? Evidence from Isotopic Data on Early Holocene Bison and Other Large Herbivores in Northern Europe. PLOS ONE, 10(2), e0115090. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0115090
Corlett, R. T. (2016). Restoration, Reintroduction, and Rewilding in a Changing World. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 31(6), 453-462. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2016.02.017
Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats, (1979).
Council of Europe. (2019). Bern Convention: Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats. Retrieved from https://www.coe.int/en/web/bern-convention/presentation
Cromsigt, J. P. G. M., Kemp, Y. J. M., Rodriguez, E., & Kivit, H. (2018). Rewilding Europe's large grazer community: how functionally diverse are the diets of European bison, cattle, and horses? Restoration Ecology, 26(5), 891-899. doi:10.1111/rec.12661
Dale-Harris, L. (2017). How the brown bear became public enemy number one in rural Romania. The Guardian. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/nov/22/how-the-brown-bear-became-public-enemy-number-one-in-rural-romania
European Commission. (2019). Natura 2000. Retrieved from http://ec.europa.eu/environment/nature/natura2000/index_en.htm
European Environment Agency. (2019). The Natura 2000 protected areas network. Retrieved from https://www.eea.europa.eu/themes/biodiversity/natura-2000
European Union. (2019). About the EU. Retrieved from https://europa.eu/european-union/about-eu/countries_en
Hostert, P., Kuemmerle, T., Radeloff, V., & Müller, D. (2008). Post-socialist land-use and land-cover change in the Carpathian Mountains.
Kuemmerle, T., Perzanowski, K., Chaskovskyy, O., Ostapowicz, K., Halada, L., Bashta, A.-T., . . . Radeloff, V. C. (2010). European Bison habitat in the Carpathian Mountains. Biological Conservation, 143(4), 908-916. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2009.12.038
LIFE Bison. (2019). LIFE Bison: Urgent actions for the recovery of European Bison populations in Romania. Retrieved from https://life-bison.com/life-bison/
Okarma, H., Dovhanych, Y., Findo, S., Ionescu, O., Koubek, P., & Szemethy, L. (2000). Status of Carnivores in the Carpathian Ecoregion. Retrieved from http://www2.nina.no/lcie_new/pdf/635012245140517288_Okarma%20WWF%20Status%20of%20LCs%20in%20Carpathians.pdf
Rewilding Europe. (2018). Pioneering study sheds new light on bison ecology and grazing communities. Retrieved from https://rewildingeurope.com/news/pioneering-study-sheds-new-light-on-bison-ecology-and-grazing-communities/
Rewilding Europe. (2019). Southern Carpathians: A wilderness arc at the heart of Europe. Retrieved from https://rewildingeurope.com/areas/southern-carpathians/
Ruffini, F. V., Streifeneder, T., & Eiselt, B. (2006). Implementing an international mountain convention - An aproach for the delimitation of the Carpathian Convention area.
Slobodyan, A. A. (1976). The European Brown Bear in the Carpathians. Bears: Their Biology and Management, 3, 313-319. doi:10.2307/3872781
Svenning, J.-C., Pedersen, P. B. M., Donlan, C. J., Ejrnæs, R., Faurby, S., Galetti, M., . . . Vera, F. W. M. (2016). Science for a wilder Anthropocene: Synthesis and future directions for trophic rewilding research. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 113(4), 898. doi:10.1073/pnas.1502556112
UNEP. (2007). Carpathians Environment Outlook. Retrieved from https://www.unenvironment.org/resources/report/carpathians-environment-outlook-2007
Vasile, M. (2018). The Vulnerable Bison: Practices and Meanings of Rewilding in the Romanian Carpathians (Vol. 16).
Vlasakker, J. v. d. (2014). Rewilding Europe Bison Rewilding Plan, 2014-2024. Retrieved from Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
WWF. (2019a). The Carpathians. Retrieved from http://wwf.panda.org/knowledge_hub/where_we_work/black_sea_basin/danube_carpathian/our_solutions/wilderness_protected_areas/carpathians/
WWF. (2019b). Endangered Species in the Carpathian Mountains. Retrieved from http://wwf.panda.org/knowledge_hub/where_we_work/black_sea_basin/danube_carpathian/our_solutions/wilderness_protected_areas/carpathians/species/