site.btaKestrels, Buzzards Reared at Wildlife Rescue Centre to Be Released near Sofia

Kestrels and common buzzards hatched or reared at the Wildlife Rescue Centre of Green Balkans in Stara Zagora (South Central Bulgaria) will be released in the area of Kremikovtsi Monastery (near Sofia) on Saturday morning, Dr Hristina Klisurova from the Wildlife Rescue Centre told BTA. The Centre's traditional release of birds will start at 11 am and is open to all animal and wildlife lovers.

Children attending the event will be acquainted with the two species of birds of prey. It is good for kids to know facts about nature and wild animals from a young age so as to protect our common home, the expert said.

The birds to be released on Saturday are aged 3 to 4 months. Kestrels and buzzards are diurnal birds of prey. Kestrels can be found in cities as well, Dr Klisurova said. 

There are over 700 animals at the Wildlife Rescue Centre in Stara Zagora, many of whom ready to be released back into the wild, she told BTA. Among them are not just birds but also hedgehogs, squirrels, and ferrets. The Centre's most frequent patients this year are white storks. Nearly 60 storks have been returned to the wild already in 2024, she specified.