STA, 2 August 2021 - A centre will open in Pivka on Monday presenting three species of large carnivores living in Slovenia - the brown bear, wolf and lynx. Center Dina is a continuation of a European project Carnivora Dinarica, aimed at protecting the carnivores and promoting co-existence.
The project Carnivora Dinarica: Cross-border cooperation and ecosystem services in the long-term preservation of large carnivore populations in the northern Dinarides is a Slovenian-Croatian project that started in September 2018 and concludes at the end of the month.
The lead partner of the project was the World Wildlife Fund, the leading organisation in wildlife conservation and endangered species, and it included Slovenian and Croatian institutes, faculties, parks and municipalities.
"Although the project is concluding, our efforts will continue," said Pivka Mayor Robert Smrdelj at today's closing conference, pointing to Center Dina, which is to attract school groups and families in particular.
According to the head of the centre, Dragica Jaksetič, visitors will need to be active. "While the museum will offer interactive content, visitors will need to do research themselves, and collect information, so the most curious ones could stay at the centre for a few hours," she said.
The cross-border project has improved the management of large carnivore population through inter-institutional cooperation, exchange of research information on the wolf and lynx populations, through analysis of habitats and joint evaluation of the role of large carnivores in the ecosystem.
As part of the project, several measures have been taken to improve the coexistence of man and large carnivores. A farm of best practices was set up, electric fences erected and shepherd dogs introduced.
Active signalisation has been set up along roads and shelters opened for orphan lynx cubs. Bear-resistant garbage cans were introduced and instructions presented for visitors of bear-populated areas.
The value of the project that covered the Nature 2000 areas of Javorniki-Snežnik and the Notranjska triangle in Slovenia as well as parts of Gorski Kotar and northern Lika in Croatia is EUR 2.3 million.
The centre can be found in Krpanov dom Pivka, Prečna ulica 1 Pivka
