Aerial view of Vrana Lake, the largest freshwater lake of the Croatian islands, on the wooded ridge of Cres

Nature & Wildlife

The Griffon Vulture Centre at Beli

Cres · Kvarner & Islands

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CATEGORY: Nature & Wildlife
COUNTRY: Croatia
REGION: Cres · Kvarner & Islands
DURATION: 1–2 days

ABOUT THIS ATTRACTION

Cres’s northern cliffs are one of Europe’s last griffon vulture strongholds; the Beli centre rescues fallen chicks, rears them and releases them over the Adriatic. The village itself is a hilltop jumble of stone houses, and the trail network along the cliff edge passes lookouts where the birds wheel at eye level over the Velebit channel.

HISTORY & BACKGROUND

The story behind it

The griffon colony has nested on Cres’s northern cliffs for centuries; by the 1980s it was crashing as chicks fell into the sea and tourism disturbed the ledges. The Beli Eco-Centre was founded in 1993 to rescue and hand-rear them — more than a hundred birds released since — and the colony is now stable at roughly a hundred pairs, one of the Balkans’ quiet conservation success stories.

WHAT TO SEE

What to see here

More here soon — the road is still being mapped.

GOOD TO KNOW

Facts & Curiosities

Around a hundred griffon pairs nest on Cres’s northern sea cliffs — one of Europe’s largest colonies.

The Beli centre has rescued and released more than a hundred vultures since 1993.

Griffon chicks fall into the sea when learning to fly; local fishermen rescue them and bring them in.

Nearby Vrana Lake is the largest freshwater lake of any Adriatic island — fed by springs, above sea level despite sitting beside the sea.

MAP & LOCATION