Sofia, March 23 (BTA/GNA) – According to data of the state hunting and forestry holdings and hunting associations, the revenues from organized hunting tourism last year totalled slightly more than BGN 6 million, Stoyan Toshev, Executive Director of the Forestry Agency, told journalists at the International Plovdiv Fair. He was speaking at Wednesday’s opening of the Nature, Hunting and Angling, and Colourful Spring. There has been a noticeable increase in game stocks, with the exception of mouflon and wild boar, due to African plague and Blue tongue outbreaks, he added.
In recent years, Bulgaria has cultivated trophies that are attractive to foreign hunters, Toshev said. In the past year, the number of Bulgarian and foreign hunters who participated in organized hunting tourism in the country has remained unchanged. A total of 4,337 hunters hunted, including 3,257 Bulgarians and 1,077 foreigners. Most of the foreign hunters who visited the country to hunt big game came from Germany, Spain, Italy and France. Hunters from Italy, Greece, Spain and France mainly prefer small game.
The costs of the state hunting and forestry holdings covering the care for the game totalled BGN 8.2 million. This includes purchase of feed for the winter, game catching and relocation, game field planting and construction of feeding troughs and salt licks, Toshev said.
Poaching is one of the main scourges in the sector and the Forestry Agency has undertaken massive checks together with the Interior Ministry, Toshev commented. There is no way to quantify the damage financially, because what is found in most cases is from unknown perpetrators, he said. Last year, 144,682 hunters, 4,318 hunting parties and 5,206 vehicles were checked throughout the country. A total of 128 violations were established and memoranda ascertaining administrative violations were drawn up for them. As a result of the checks, four motor vehicles, 18 legal weapons, 9 sound reproducing devices, unregistered hunting trophies, game meat, and killed game or identifiable parts thereof were impounded.
BTA/GNA