The Beli visitor centre reports more breeding pairs and feathered young than in 2025. Breeding success stands at 75 per cent—below last year's level. Here is what the figures show and why coastal protection remains necessary.
More nests are good news
The annual figures from the Beli visitor centre and griffon-vulture rehabilitation centre are encouraging: winter monitoring in 2026 recorded 173 breeding pairs, and summer monitoring counted 130 feathered young. The previous year's overview listed 156 pairs and 125 young. Both the number of pairs and young birds documented has increased.
That is the reliable message behind the beautiful image of a large bird above the sea. The figures describe the observed breeding population and this season's outcome. They are not a complete count of every griffon vulture moving above Croatia at any point.
Why 130 does not automatically mean record breeding success
Beli reports breeding success of 75 per cent for 2026, compared with 80.13 per cent for 2025. Absolute numbers have risen while the share of successful breeding attempts is lower than last year. Both can be true at once.
The term young bird also requires care: the Croatian overview refers to feathered young. We do not turn that into a count of all hatched chicks or a guarantee that every bird already flies safely or will survive the next winter. Later development belongs to a different monitoring series.
The view extends beyond Cres
Monitoring in 2026 recorded ten breeding pairs and nine young on Učka. Five nests are listed near Brseč, where Beli says the breeding site has existed for three years. Conservation attention is therefore not limited to the best-known island cliffs.
For visitors, this chiefly means restraint. A new breeding site is not an invitation to seek the nearest viewpoint to a nest. Binoculars and distance are better than an ever-closer photograph. We therefore publish no detailed nest coordinates or supposed secret access routes.
After the nest comes another difficult stage
The Beli rehabilitation centre explains that young vultures in particular need help after falling from cliffs into the sea. Injured or exhausted adults are also admitted. Successfully rehabilitated birds are released, while rings and, in some cases, GPS transmitters help track their movements.
That is why a good breeding result is not an all-clear for species protection. Breeding, the first flight and independent survival are different stages. Visible growth in one place replaces neither safe habitats nor work on other threats.
A bird in the water is not a photo opportunity
If you find a griffon vulture in the sea or clearly exhausted and unable to fly, report it promptly via 112. Give the location as accurately as possible and say whether the bird is swimming, sitting on shore or appears injured. Follow rescuers' instructions and do not endanger yourself with an improvised rescue on a cliff or in waves.
The centre works with specialists and supporters on rescue and rehabilitation. Capturing, transporting or feeding the bird independently is not a substitute for coordination. Managed feeding sites on Cres and Učka are part of organised conservation, not an invitation to leave food anywhere.
Turning observation into support
Plan a visit to Beli as an opportunity to understand the birds and their protection, and check the centre's current visitor information. Outdoors, do not disturb animals, respect access rules and do not force an encounter.
The 2026 figures are worth celebrating. They are strongest when neither diminished nor exaggerated: more observed breeding pairs, slightly more feathered young and an exacting task that continues for the people following this development over years.
Fakty
Zdroje a dátum
Zdroje nesú fakty. Plánovacie poznámky a odporúčania sú redakčným hodnotením Golden Beach.
- Vulture monitoring – annual series including 2026Beli Visitor Centre and Griffon Vulture Rehabilitation Centre · checked 4 October 2026173 pairs, 130 feathered young, previous-year comparison and subareas
- Griffon Vulture Rehabilitation CentreBeli Visitor Centre · checked 4 October 2026Rescue, rehabilitation, release and reporting via 112
- Griffon Vulture Feeding SiteBeli Visitor Centre · checked 4 October 2026Managed feeding sites on Cres and Učka
