A continuous increase in the colonization of thickets and individual trees in the urban and peri-urban tissue of the city with coracoids, mainly corvids (Corvusfrugilegus), has been observed recently and specifically since the beginning of March in Karditsa. Especially in the “Pausilipo” grove, with an area of ​​several tens of acres, in the recent census conducted by collaborators of the Wildlife Management Laboratory of the Department of Forestry, Wood Sciences and Planning (DEXYS) of the University of Thessaly, more than 300 active nests of hawks were recorded.

As Dr. Periklis K. Birtsas, professor of Wildlife Biology, emphasizes in APE-MPE, in Karditsa and the neighboring areas, more than 700 raccoons create problems (nuisance, depositing excrement, pollution, etc.) and “threaten” public health and security. More specifically, according to him, the havaronis are a species of coracidae that nested in Greece before the 1960s, while since the 2000s they have re-nested with increasing and expanding trends.

In an effort to capture the current situation, from June 2022, the DEXYS Department and the Wildlife Management Laboratory proceeded with a series of actions. Meetings were held with representatives of the Municipality of Karditsa, officials of the Karditsa Forestry, teachers, representatives of organizations and businessmen.

Data were collected on the breeding population of coracidae species in Karditsa and the nesting characteristics of coracidae in “Pausilipo” were recorded. Also, data was collected regarding the attitude of the residents of Karditsa towards the breeding coracidae species and the proposed management measures were evaluated, in the context of the preparation of two master’s theses.

Afterwards, a working meeting was held between the mayor of Karditsa, businessmen and the director of the Wildlife Management Laboratory of the Department. RIGHT, professor Periklis Birtsa, which led to the decision of the Municipal Council to entrust the preparation and submission of a proposal, to a group of scientists of the Wildlife Management Laboratory, for the implementation of management measures in order to prevent or limit the effects, due to the increased presence of coracoids, to the residents of the Municipality of Karditsa and their pets.

At the same time, an Evening was organized by the Center for Environmental Education of Mouzaki and “OIKOSFAIRA” with the theme: “Impacts of coracoids in an urban environment – The case of Pavsilipou Park in Karditsa”.

As Mr. Birtsas describes to APE-MPE, the voices of the crows make it unbearable to stay in the “Pausilipo” park and in neighboring areas.

In fact, the accumulation of large amounts of excrement and the frequent finding of dead individuals of corvids in areas where children and pets are active, pose risks for the transmission of pathogens and the emergence of diseases. Due to the hatching of eggs and the development of the chicks of coracoids, he explains, young individuals are observed to be on the ground, due to falling from the nests, with the result that their parents try to protect them and attack citizens who happen to approach them.

The appearance of mosquitoes and the coexistence of coracoids within the urban fabric carries risks of occurrence of cases of West Nile virus infection. The professor emphasizes that “at this point in time, and as long as the reproduction process of coracoids evolves, there is no possibility to design an integrated program for coracoid management and impact prevention, however it is deemed necessary to take immediate measures to deal with the effects that are expected to be caused by the overpopulation of coracoid species within the urban fabric of the city of Karditsa”.

Indicatively, he mentions the implementation of measures to expel cormorants from the “Pausilipo” with sacrificial hunting methods (use of trained predators), use of click sources and the voices of predatory birds, use of laser devices, use of replicas of raptors, installation of traps to capture and remove individuals of cormorants, etc.