SGGW Scientists from the Institute of Animal Sciences help the European bison restitution

On March 28, 2022, 5 European bison from Poland set off on a journey to Serbia. Their destination is the Fruška Gora National Park, where wisent will live on a 120 ha farm occupied by the forest, while one sixth of the farm is covered by pasture and meadows. This is the first semi-free herd of European bison in Serbia.

Until now, those animals have been kept only in the zoo in Palic. Another breeding of the species is to be established in Europe, thus Serbia will join the efforts to actively protect the European bison. Four females from the Bison Breeding Center at the Białowieża National Park and a male from the Warsaw Zoological Garden have left for the journey. 

The relocation of the wisent for their further breeding results from the bison breeding program included in the Wisent protection strategy in Poland(Bison bonasus), and the European Bison Action Plan published by IUCN.

Before getting around, the animals are to be examined to receive a relevant health certificate issued by a veterinarian. The entire project must be approved by the competent authorities, i.e. GDOŚ (The General Directorate for Environmental Protection), and for animals coming from the national park, by the Minister of Climate and Environment. Each wisent has to travel in a separate wooden box to ensure their safety during the transport. The European bison export to Serbia is co-financed by the “Comprehensive protection of the European bison by the State Forests” project, and coordinated by the SGGW specialists.

For many years, the team led by prof. Olech has been carrying out a series of activities to protect the king of the forest in Poland and Europe. Thanks to their work the number of wisent increases, and more than 100 have been already moved to various European breeding farms over the last few years.