Despite the challenging conditions, this year has proven to be a crucial stage for the natural restoration processes in our region. Although the war has affected every part of Ukraine, we have much to share and reasons to be hopeful.
The Danube Delta has made it through this year thanks to the resilience of local communities, collaborative efforts, and the tremendous support of people who never gave up hope for the rewilding of nature. Fortunately, our team was able to maintain our core activities and continue with the rewilding programs.
Through smooth cooperation with partners in Romania, Ukraine, and Moldova, we have established new partnerships that open up opportunities for future projects and initiatives aimed at conserving and restoring the delta’s ecosystem. Nature is responding to our efforts, and we are seeing positive changes — animals that settled here in previous years are actively reproducing, and ecosystems are recovering.
We believe that 2025 will be a year of further growth and development, and that soon, with peace, we will be able to do even more for the restoration of nature. Rewilding is a key tool in this process, and we are ready to continue our work, together with you, to restore the green lungs of Europe — the Danube Delta.
Comeback of large herbivores
Fallow and red deer
This year, 20 European fallow deer and 5 red deer were released into the Tarutino steppe in the Odessa region. The animals were brought from northern Ukraine and released into a fenced area of more than thirty hectares to acclimatize to their new conditions. This group of fallow deer will enhance the previously introduced animals, laying the foundation for a stable population of the species in the region. More about release.
Water buffalos
6 female water buffalo have recently settled on Ermakiv Island in the Danube Delta to enrich the gene pool of the local buffalo herd. The water buffalo were introduced to Ermakiv Island in the Danube Biosphere Reserve in 2019 as part of rewilding efforts. Their presence helps restore the natural grazing process, create mosaic landscapes, contribute to the island’s biodiversity, and attract tourists. Approximately 50 years ago, water buffalo inhabited the Danube Delta, and their comeback to the region marks a significant milestone. Learn more.
Steppe restoration
Work continues to restore areas of the Tarutino Steppe that were illegally plowed in 2016. This year, we collected seed material from undamaged areas using the methodology developed by experts from the Askania-Nova Biosphere Reserve. At the end of summer and into autumn, further agro-technical measures will be carried out to sow another 250 hectares of plowed areas with steppe grass seeds. More information.
Hamster release
A group of 13 European hamsters have just been released on the Tarutino Steppe in Ukraine. This is the third release of an ongoing reintroduction programme overseen by the Rewilding Ukraine team, in collaboration with Kyiv Zoo and the Tarutino Steppe Nature and Ethnographic Park. Groups of hamsters were previously released on the steppe in 2022 and 2023, with the next release scheduled for 2025.
The burgeoning presence of the diminutive rodents, which were once widespread across Ukraine, will contribute to the creation of a wilder and ecologically healthier steppe landscape, helping to restore local food webs and enhance biodiversity, as well as boosting nature-based tourism. More about release.
Second marmot release
Two groups of steppe marmots have been released on Ukraine’s Tarutino Steppe. Boosting the thriving population of marmots already here, the 18 animals will help to create a healthier, more functional steppe environment. Marmots help to maintain a healthy steppe environment through their burrowing and feeding, while they are also an important part of local food web.
Comeback of the keystone spesies
Eagle owl
Five eagle owls have been released in the Danube Delta rewilding landscape in Ukraine, as part of an ongoing reintroduction programme. The releases represent a significant step forward in the programme, which aims to re-establish a viable population of the birds in the landscape and enhance the overall health of the delta ecosystem. Watch how it was done
A nesting platform for Dalmatian pelicans
Coordinated by Rewilding Europe, the Pelican Way of LIFE initiative kicked off in late 2019, with the aim of enhancing populations of the Dalmatian pelican in southwest Europe – including in the Danube Delta, one of the strongholds of the species. Partners in the initiative have been working to reduce the threats to the birds and improve their habitat at 27 sites across Romania, Bulgaria, Greece and Ukraine, as well as carrying out capacity building and research in Turkey, Albania, Montenegro, and North Macedonia. The Pelican Way of LIFE initiative has also seen the Rewilding Ukraine team construct a number of artificial nesting platforms in different locations across the Ukrainian part of the Danube Delta rewilding landscape over the last few years. Learn more.
Danube Delta Rewilders Camp
At the beginning of July 2024, the Danube Delta Rewilders Camp, organized by Rewilding Ukraine and Rewilding Romania, welcomed 30 enthusiastic secondary school children from the local communities of the delta. The camp took place in Jurilovca, a charming village on the Romanian side of the delta.
Throughout the camp, the young explorers learned about the natural processes, keystone species of the Danube Delta, the critical importance of healthy wetlands and steppes, and how rewilding can help both nature and the people of the delta thrive. The camp’s activities also focused on practical rewilding actions, allowing participants to take hands-on steps toward restoring nature. About camp.
Rewilding together with local communities
The Rewilding Ukraine team have been carrying out efforts to restore the Tarutino Steppe since 2019. A social study carried out recently by the team found widespread support for rewilding among the residents of Borodino, a community which owns the steppe. The results of the study will help to guide future engagement as rewilding scales up. Following five years of steppe rewilding, the Rewilding Ukraine team recently conducted a social attitude study among Borodino community residents. A total of 47 people took part in a face-to-face survey in February and March, based on a comprehensive questionnaire. Interviewees comprised 18 public opinion leaders (local officials, community leaders, and small business owners and managers), 16 hunters, and 13 farmers. Find out the results.
Proactive measures enhance human-wildlife coexistence in the Danube Delta
Several groups of red and fallow deer have been released in the Ukrainian part of the cross-border Danube Delta rewilding landscape in recent years and are now thriving. Through their grazing and browsing, these animals are enhancing biodiversity on a growing scale, while their consumption of fire-prone vegetation is also helping to reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire outbreaks. But with water levels in the delta higher than the normal in the spring of this year, many deer moved to higher ground in search of food. And that quest led them to people’s private land and gardens filled with fruit trees, located on islands close to the city of Vylkove. To address this issue, the Rewilding Ukraine team rapidly organised a meeting with the local community and Vylkove city council. Jointly, they came up with a win-win solution – the installation of protective fencing. Find out what the result was
Gratitude
The Rewilding team of the Danube delta sincerely thanks all partners, experts, and contractors for the joint efforts that made these achievements possible, as well as all supporters for their help in these difficult times! We hope next year we can achieve more together to make the Danube delta healthier and wilder!
Rewilding efforts in the Danube delta were made possible with the financial support of the Rewilding Europe, Endangered Landscapes & Seascapes Programme and the LIFE program of the European Union.