
06 May WE ARE ESTABLISHING THE BREEDING STATION FOR SUPPORTIVE BREEDING OF THE ITALIAN CRESTED NEWT IN KOZJANSKO PARK
Population reinforcement with supportive breeding in breeding stations is already a well established technique in Denmark and Germany. Their knowledge and experience will be transferred to Slovenia, where we are establishing the first breeding station in our country.
The purpose of supportive breeding is to strenghten the populations of species that are small and isolated. Rearing is a valuable tool to re-establish a population and reach a good conservation status with simultaneous improvement of habitat.
Supportive breeding in Kozjansko park was firts planned for the European fire-bellied toad (Bombina bombina), but with the inventorisation of amphibians in the Natura 2000 site Dobrava-Jovsi we assess that the species is probably already extinct from the area.
Intense surveys of the area also showed that the population of the Italian crested newt (Triturus carnifex) is also very small, isolated and has bad conservation status. Hence we decided to change the planned breeding in action Population reinforcement from breeding of European fire-bellied toad to the rearing of Italian crested newt instead. Breeding station at Kozjansko park in Podsreda is therefore set up for breeding the larvae of this caudata target species.
Photo: Anja Bolčina