Last days for the wild horses in Letea forest

I'm speechless. Two years ago I wrote about the wild horses in Letea forest, as a response to a great video I found on youtube. The authors, Lucian Reniţă and Irina Stelea, were explaining that they eat trees crust and this might cause death of some trees. However, the horses, allegedly released sometimes in the '80s, adapted to the very tough conditions in Danube Delta's winters and evolved into a real genetic patrimony of Romania.

I was telling my colleagues from allover Europe about them and about the unique place that Danube Delta is.

However, few days ago, some smart ass (Romanian authorities, but I couldn't tell exactly who and why, I'm trying to find out) decided the horses should be killed. Yes, killed. The official reason is that some of them suffer from horses' anemia; however, without waiting for analyses from the laboratory they are paying villagers up to 100 lei (25 EUR !) per horse, so the very poor people inhabiting the area capture the horses, claim themselves as owners of the animals and put them together waiting to be killed with really inhuman crudity. 

This pictures might help having an idea about the way Romanian people in that area treat animals. No animal deserves this treatment, less the poor horses.
By the time I'm writing this 50 of the 71 horses captured so far are in a truck heading probably for a slaughterhouse somewhere in the west Romania. I repeat, this happens even though the lab analyses arrived and indicated they have no horses anemia. 21 remained there and are waiting to be killed during the coming days.

Here is another video shot with this beautiful animals.

Here is a new Facebook community aiming to do something about this and here is a petition for saving the horses in the Danube Delta. Here is a reportage made by a one of the biggest Romanian TV channels.

Update: After reading some more I understand the problem is the big number of horses (latest numbers indicate about 4000) and the damage they do over the species of plants. Apparently, due to the fear of infectious anemia they cannot be moved to other areas or used by the people. This I can understand and I can also understand the need of a balance in this very sensitive eco-system. However, I cannot understand the way they are killed, without waiting for lab results and without looking for a better solution.

New Nature Reserves in Danube Delta

"Prundu cu păsări" and "Ceaplace" islands, in Danube Delta will be declared nature reserved and will be closed for public access.

Scientific reserve Ceaplace Island will have a total area, including the water area, of 117 hectares and the size of the island is 0.6 ha. Laying in the north part of Sinoie Lake, the island is one of the three areas in Romania sheltering colonies of Curly Pelicans (Pelecanus Crispus).

The scientific reserve "Prundu cu păsări" islands has a total area of 187 hectares and the approximate size of the islands is 1,4 hectares. Approximate not because no-one was was able to measure it exactly, but because it varies continuously, together with the configuration of the entire Danube Delta.

the islands from Prundu cu păsări shelter a mix colony of birds, out of which the most important are the Spoonbill (Platalea leucorodia), the Dalmatian Pelican (Pelecanus Crispus), who tries to build the nests here. But they also offer shelter and a place to rest to the common white pelican (Pelecanus onocrotalus) and other protected birds. 

The administration of the two areas is insured by ARBDD (Romanian Administration of Danube Delta's Biosphere Reserve) and access of tourists, as well as any economic activity is forbidden. 

We salute the initiative and the conservation status granted to the two areas and we really hope more areas in Romania will be included in the nature reserve list. But we also hope the status of the nature reserve is really protected and no economic activities will take place there, unlike now, when some well-connected people are allowed to build them own houses in the middle of nature reserves.

Camping in Danube Delta

During the first half of August, 2010, the "Environment Protection Guard" applied fines of 162.650 Lei (about 40.000 EUR) for illegal camping. Some of the areas where people can camp without worries are Delfinul camping, in Sfantu Gheorghe, Campoeuroclub Partizani, Sulina youth camp (though the youth camp in Sulina, doesn't have too many facilities, IMO).

I totally agree that camping should be allowed only in some areas, but there is a smell of "let's help the guest-houses and hotels" here. If people respect the nature and leave no trace behind, if they don't disturb the animals and birds, I see nothing wrong with camping in the areas that are not strictly restricted.

No Toxic Residues in Danube Delta

Romania's senate voted today two laws that forbids storage of the toxic residues in Danube Delta. Basically there is forbidden any deposit of toxic or radioactive residue at a distance smaller than 20 km from the Black Sea coastline or in the "Natura 2000" protected areas.

Landscapes of Danube Delta

Here is another slideshow with pictures by Leonard Butusina. I don't know Leonard yet, but I'd like to meet him and have a chat.

Just watch the pictures and you'll understand why we love Danube Delta, why we consider it as one of the most beautiful places in Europe and why when someone asks me what to see in Romania I always recommend Danube Delta as a must-see.

Birds of Danube Delta

The birds and the main treasure of Danube Delta. 325 species of birds shelter and nest here, out of which some are very rare. Like the Curly Pelican (Pelecanus Dalmatus) or the pigmy cormorant. Lucian Butusina has a very nice slideshow surprising the pelicans (Pelecanus Onocrotalus), the take-off of the swans (Cygnus Olor), the Black-winged Stilt, (Himantopus himantopus), the Pochard (Aythya Ferina), a tern (Sterna Hirundo), the Squacco heron , a falcon (which I would idetntify as Falco Subbuteo), an Ibis (Glossy Ibis), the Spoonbill (Platalea Leucordia), the Little Egret (Egretta Garzetta), the Black Headed Gull

People of Danube Delta

A slide show with lovely pictures by Leonard Butusina. While other similar slide-shows concentrate on the landscape or the birds, this time Leonard's pictures are about people living in Danube Delta, them households and the lifestyle:

Birds of danube delta

Yet another slideshow, on a daring music.
Nice pictures by Romeo Huidu, presenting many of Danube Delta's birds:

Passenger boat in Danube Delta

The transfer by the passenger boat in Danube Delta is a nice trip in itself, we we can see in this video. There are two types of boats: a slow one and a fast catamaran. The slow passenger boat, called by the locals simply "Pasagerul" (the passenger) is the one I recommend. The catamaran is faster, you cannot stay outside and you don't see that many birds as from the slow one.
That's why, whenever possible Outdoor Holidays' excursion in Danube Delta feature transfer by the slow passenger boat and the guide will stay with you outside showing the birds and explaining the local traditions.

Rafting in Danube Delta

In 2001 a group of French guys travelled along the Danube in a raft.
Here is the part of the trip from Danube Delta. It seems to have been a nice adventure.



If you'd like trying a similar experience, you can check out Outdoor Holidays' Canoeing and kayaking trips in Danube Delta

Nature photography

Let's start the year with this slideshow of excelent pictures taken by Daniel Petrescu in Dobrogea & Danube Delta:



thanks Daniel for posting this on youtube!

Photo-tour in Danube Delta

I just found another nice presentation of the Danube Delta. Is done in a photo tour in May 2009 :
Nice images of the birds, but also the people and the landscape. And is not only the quality of pictures that I like, but also the music is well chosen.

Images from Danube's delta

And another slideshow with images from Danube's delta. It starts with a curly pelican, continues with other birds, like a white pelican and swans, the terns, the squacco heron., the grey heron, the ibis or the egrets.
The reed formations are not forgotten, as well as the fishermen. At 1:15 one can see the passenger boat connecting Tulcea with some remote places, like Sulina or Sfântu Gheorghe village

Snake vs fish

I just found this amazing video of a snake eating a goldfish near Sfântu Gheorghe. Fishing in Danube Delta is not only a way to relax and mind-wash, but also a way to discover a fabulous wildlife

Birds and lifestyle in Danube Delta

Here is a nice presentation of yet another vacation in the Danube Delta. We can see birds, like the Glossy Ibis, the traditional rowing boats, sterna hirundo and the White Pelican, a colony of terns taking off, a Marsh Harrier (Circus Aeroginosus). But also peasants loading the hay, a shepherd's flock.

Uzlina holidays village

Images from a holidays village in Uzlina, that looks really, really nice,
Pictures of birds, the egret, the pelicans , coots, seagulls or elegant flying swans.

all on a music background represented by Iosif Ivanovici's "Waves of the Danube". The slideshow ends with few images from Olimp, Black Sea.

Photos from Danube Delta, Romania

The fourth of the photo slideshows made by Kerucov. This time, we admire pictures from Lacul Rosu (the Red Lake), Caraorman, Erenciuc. Nice sunrise on the beach, birds (we can admire the the egret Egreta Garzetta, people gone fishing, reed, cormorants, willows and Danube's Arms. It ends with people kayaking on the Danube

And a very relaxing music.

Well done, guys !

Boating in Danube Delta

Here is the third part of the pictures slide-shows. Boating on Danube Delta Reserve's narrow and larger channels, admiring the birds, taking pictures at the sunset and sunrise. I particularly like the photo of the old boats and the new, engine boat, sitting next to each other. But also the one at 00:14 , with the road going in the mist of time,

Pictures from Danube Delta

Here is the second part of the slide-show from a trip in Danube's Delta. Images from the Black Sea, the beach , the dunes of sand, the boats:

Here is a nice photo slide show made by the photo website kerucov.ro.
Travelling from Tulcea to Sfântu Gheorghe by the passenger boat, images from Sfantu Gheorghe, waterlilies , a nice sunset over the Danube, fishermen's boats.