For decades, Griffon Vultures Gyps fulvus have been suffering mass losses from poisoning incidents, which have driven the resident population of the island to functional extinction. Through the project “LIFE with Vultures CY", efforts have been made to save Griffon Vultures from local extinction by mitigating illegal use of poisoned baits as well as other threats.

 

Gathering of information around mortality causes reveal that the local Vulture population will go extinct in the next decade if no action is taken. However, focused conservation actions to reduce mortalities and boost the local population give hope for the future of this emblematic species.

 

Since September 2024, Mrs Melpo Apostolidou is the Director of BirdLife Cyprus, one the most active e-NGOs in Cyprus. She has over 14 years of experience in bird conservation while her previous roles in the organization were on project management and planning, awareness raising, and communication.

She is a highly motivated professional conservationist, with a passion to protect wild birds and habitats. Melpo has experience in wetland restoration and the last 5 years she has been working on restoring the threatened Vulture population in Cyprus. Melpo graduated from Aristoteleion University of Thessaloniki with a Degree in Biology and from University of Southampton, UK with an MSc in Environmental Monitoring and Assessment.