Birds of Albania by Zydjon Vorpsi, PPNEA

Zydjon Vorpsi has been working for 5 years at Protection and Preservation of Natural Environment in Albania, which is the first environmental organization in Albania founded in 1991. His main focus has been the study and the protection of birds in Albania. He has worked as a coordinator in the Wetland Management and Dalmatian Pelican Conservation in the Mediterranean Basin Program and lately has been leading the work against bird crimes at PPNEA with the support of the Adriatic Flyway 4 project, working to create a safer flyway in Albania for migratory birds and tackle issues such as the illegal killing of birds, poisoning and electrocution. In the meantime he has been running the campaign against the construction of Vlora airport inside the Vjosa-Narta protected landscape, which is one of the most important sites for migratory birds along the Adriatic Flyway.

Albania, also known as the land of eagles and castles, has registered more than 360 bird species in its political territory, using Albania as a breeding or wintering site or just as a migration stop. Some of them are extinct in the country, meanwhile some of the species such as the white stork, dalmatian pelicans or Egyptian vulture are recovering or having a stable population due to the conservation measures implemented. As one of the most important countries in the Adriatic Flyway, it holds around 150,000 water birds from 60 different species in the most important wetlands, and has a variety of habitats, from alpine bird species down to the sea shore. As a country under development the importance of these bird populations is often left aside to give priority to unsustainable development. PPNEA’s fight to protect wild birds includes scientific studies to identify the important bird areas or to proclaim new protected areas, awareness raising and direct actions in the field to tackle the issues which cause the decrease of bird populations.

Photo (c) Zydjon Vorpsi