Bulgaria

Bulgaria sits at a biogeographical crossroads between central Europe, the Mediterranean and Asia Minor, which explains its high diversity for its size. The Rila and Pirin mountains keep residual glaciers, high-altitude lakes and Macedonian pine forests, and are the stronghold of a southern alpine fauna with chamois and golden eagles. The Rhodopes, a massif of limestone and gorges in the south, have become the European centre for vulture recovery, with griffon and Egyptian vultures and reintroduced bearded vultures. The Black Sea coast, with the Burgas lagoons, lies directly beneath the Via Pontica, the second most important migratory route in Europe. The Danube valley, the floodplain forest of Persina island and the Srebarna wetlands add Dalmatian pelicans and mixed colonies of waterbirds.