From small to big – how we learn about the Iron Gates

The activities took place in the area of the nature park, on the administrative territory of 9 municipalities and 2 cities, through the direct involvement of local schools, road administrators, but also the administrators of the national forest fund. The objectives of the project were:

1. Improving the conservation of local species in the Iron Gates Nature Park, by avoiding / reducing the number of road fatalities, and by increasing awareness among local communities and park visitors.
2. Making the young generation responsible for the ecological requirements of the protected species in the Iron Gates Nature Park, by placing biodiversity kits into operation and monitoring them in schoolyards.
3. Raising awareness of the general public about the natural values of the Iron Gates Nature Park and the emblematic species, through an online campaign.

Related to the first objective, periodic monitoring by nature park staff revealed significant wildlife mortality along National Road 57 (DN57) due to road traffic. DN57 (but also DN57A) crosses almost the entire length of the nature park, also connecting it with neighboring protected natural areas (e.g. Nerei Gorge – Beușnița NP) and even with cross-border ones (Djerdap NP). Anyway, the park is one of the largest protected areas in Romania (the Natura 2000 site has 124,293 ha), and DN57 and DN57A follow the course of the Danube for over 130 km, between Baziaș and Orșova. Thus, the crossing from the dryland (hills, mountains) to the water (Danube) can be a real challenge for amphibian, reptile and mammal species, they becoming “victims of the roads “, road mortalities.

The project helped these animals, which cross public roads, by creating large and visible traffic signs. Signs were created with the symbols of snakes, frogs, turtles and salamanders, these being the groups most impacted by road traffic on DN57. After the approval of the traffic signs by the competent authorities, they were placed in critical locations. A total of 12 traffic signs were placed, which over time will reduce traffic-related mortality and make the general public aware that they are crossing a protected natural area. As Amalia, the natural park biologist, tells us:

“The implementation of this activity helped us to inform and make road traffic participants aware of the impact they have on the small biodiversity, hardly visible in case of high-speed traffic. After years of monitoring wildlife road mortalities, through the implementation of the project we managed to install road signals that reduce the effect of this traffic.”

Amalia also tells us: “From my perspective, as a biologist, the implementation of the project brought into discussion one of the problems that society began to face, without realizing it: pollinators. Who are they, what are they? Are they doing well? Do we know other pollinators besides bees and butterflies? What impact do they have on biodiversity and on our everyday life?”. And because the education of the young generation is essential and directly related to nature conservation, objective no. 2 of the project targeted 11 schools in the park area and the students, children from these schools.

Thus, between July and August, colleagues from the park administration held outdoor presentations, talked about the flora and fauna of the park, including about emblematic species and species beneficial to local communities, for example bats. Because bats are very useful to mankind, through the excessive consumption of insects. During the discussions, the young generation was able to understand that although they are small, insects have an overwhelming role in maintaining the balance of life. At the same time, notions such as the food chain, the trophic pyramid and ecosystem services were explained to them concretely and practically. And to cement the knowledge acquired, a biodiversity kit was installed in the yard of each school, consisting of 1 bird feeder, 1 bat house and 1 insect hotel. In this way, children always have at hand a concrete reminder in the school yard about the various elements of biodiversity (birds, bats, insects), which are connected to each other by ecological links. In total, more than 170 children learned firsthand about the natural values of the Iron Gates.

The biodiversity and species in the Iron Gates are remarkable, the park being one of the most diverse in the country. The area provides habitats for more than 3,000 species of plants, for more than 250 species of birds, as well as for a number of species of amphibians, reptiles, mammals and invertebrates. The CBRC has already implemented several projects at the level of the protected area, for example the Romanian-Serbian cross-border project, for the conservation of bats migrating between Serbia and Romania. But in the current project we dealt more widely with the protected species of plants and animals of the nature park.

Thus, to achieve objective no. 3. (raising awareness of the general public about the natural values of the Iron Gates Nature Park), we created 172 infographics about the protected plant and animal species from the park’s standard list. We’ve also included simple ways to protect these species. With simple and easy-to-understand language, the infographics are aimed at the younger generation, but can actually be used by anyone for nature education. Below you can find a small selection, but in this detailed article you will find all 172 infographics. We invite you to discover and share the remarkable fauna of the Iron Gates!

In general, the project contributed to the implementation of the management plan of the Iron Gates Nature Park, which is actually the set of rules that must be followed to preserve the continuity of the flora and fauna of a protected area. In the present case, Amalia tells us: “These activities are present in the annual work plan and the management plan of the nature park, so the implementation of the project made a significant contribution to the fulfillment of some measures specified in these documents.” Although with a relatively small budget (approx. EUR 8.000), the project managed to achieve the proposed objectives and contribute to the protection of unique nature in one of the most important protected areas in Romania, the Iron Gates Nature Park.

Thanks to everybody who was involved, and to our funders!