Today 100 red deer (Cervus elaphus) inhabit the Galichica national park. This does not sound unusual – unless we know that this species went extinct in the park a couple of decades ago.

In 2018 the national park received a grant under the EU-funded programme for better management of protected areas. With a budget of nearly 470,000 euros, mainly EU funds, the management of the park achieved remarkable results.

The park set up a reproductive center for red deer on almost 90 ha with the first 30 deer being delivered at the end of 2019 and the beginning of 2020. Thanks to the efforts of the park staff, their number has tripled.

Why was the reintroduction of red deer so important for Galichica?

Dry grasslands, typical for this national park, were endangered in the past decades. Because of the lack of grazing livestock, they grew out of control and that started to threaten their rich biodiversity and the landscape. The reintroduction of red deer, an autochthonous natural grazer in Galichica, was proposed as a measure in conserving the grasslands. Results are visible in the video. /media/76783

Roaming deer add to the beauty of Galichica while protecting its biodiversity. But that is not the only benefit from EU assistance.

Thanks to the same grant, the park updated its biodiversity monitoring programme and procured monitoring and firefighting equipment. Also, the park has hired extra staff - to help in monitoring the biodiversity, in raising awareness of the need for protection of nature and in improving the planning.