conserving important plant areas: investing - Plantlife

Section III: Important Plant Area country reports – national overview of IPAs
Honey production is common on the IPAs
of South East Europe.
34
ELIZABETH RADFORD
Land use
Forestry activities are dominant in Bulgaria, as are forest habitats.Agricultural land uses
are associated with over 50% of sites, particularly grazing and haymaking. Many IPAs are
used for nature conservation and research, common activities on protected areas, of
which there are a large proportion in the Bulgarian IPA network. IPAs are prime sites
for nature, so tourism related land uses are also expected. Hunting in Bulgaria is a
popular pass-time and the third most frequent land use on IPAs. Hunting is for deer, wild
boar, hare and birds (quail, pheasant, wild ducks and geese). Hunting is allowed over large
parts of the territory state, municipal and some privately owned lands. It takes place in
different seasons, for example arable lands are used for hunting hare and quail only after
harvesting. In most cases hunting has a neutral impact on plant biodiversity. Fossicking
wild boar open up bare ground for colonisation by woodland plants which can be
positive, and when the populations are high, hunting quotas increase which can benefit
the rare bulb species on which they browse.
No. of IP A s
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
forestry
nature conservation
hunting
agriculture (animals)
tourism/recreation
agriculture (mixed)
urban/industrial/transport
unknown
water management
49% or 'major' cover
100% cover
mowing/hay making
Fig. 9.Top ten land uses and their extent (cover) on IPAs in Bulgaria
not utilised
CONSERVING IMPORTANT PLANT AREAS: INVESTING IN THE GREEN GOLD OF SOUTH EAST EUROPE