A conference on the inventory and monitoring of large carnivore populations was held on 29 May at the Information and Education Center on Bijambare, featuring an overview of suitable methodologies for tracking bears, wolves, and lynx. Participants were welcomed by Asad Jelešković, Director of the Cantonal Public Institution for Protected Natural Areas, who introduced the institution’s work and plans.
The conference was organized by experts involved in the Dinaric-Balkan-Pindos Large Carnivore Initiative, under which a manual for monitoring large carnivores in the Dinaric-Balkan-Pindos region was developed. The event provided an opportunity for experts from Slovenia, Croatia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina to exchange experiences on monitoring large carnivore populations and served as an incentive to develop a national species monitoring system and engage key stakeholders across Bosnia and Herzegovina (particularly in the Federation).
The conference was intended for relevant authorities and field professionals working in hunting, forestry, and nature conservation, as well as for scientists whose research interests involve the presence of large carnivores. The initiative to establish a transnational platform for large carnivores in the Dinaric-Balkan-Pindos region (DiBaPi) was launched in early 2021. The goal of the DiBaPi initiative and platform is to establish a long-term mechanism for the exchange of experiences and data on the management of shared populations of large carnivores – bears, wolves, and lynx. This approach mirrors models implemented in other regions, such as the Alpine Convention and the Carpathian Convention, which also involve cooperation on transborder management of large carnivores, protected areas, forests, and