European Stork Village 2013 - Češinovo-Obleševo (Macedonia)
The Macedonian European Stork Village of Češinovo-Obleševo is a ‘stork parish’ comprising 11 small villages in all. Situated in the Bregalnica river basin, this parish provides the white stork with rich feeding grounds. The large rice fields, in particular, are home to a wide variety of amphibians. The Ko?ani-Štip valley (a large part of which lies within the parish of Češinovo-Obleševo) is home to the second largest population of white storks in Macedonia, with 180 pairs. Unlike the region of Pelagonia in the south, where the the largest populations of white storks are found, the number of storks in the Bregalnica river basin is currently table, even experiencing slight growth. The rice fields of the parish of Češinovo-Obleševo provide a valuable habitat not only for the white stork but also for a number of species of heron, such as the night heron, grey heron, little egret and the great white egret. Until now there were insufficient funds and know-how in the parish to carry out far-reaching conservation measures. As a member of the European Stork Village network they have been given an opportunity to develop strategies for sustainable stork protection.
Nests on: houses, electricity poles
Stork festival: planned
Partners: Macedonian Ecological Society (MES), parish of Češinovo-Obleševo