Thanks to donations from citizens, the Society for the Protection of Birds bought Slavujev lug in Banat

For the first time in Serbia, a community of bird lovers became the owner of the forest 🌳🐦🌳

Thanks to donations from members and sympathizers, the Society for the Protection and Study of Birds of Serbia (DZPPS) bought Slavujev lug – a wild forest in the Banat municipality of Plandište that is at least 30 years old.

In the middle of last year, DZPPS bought Slavujev lug with an area of ​​two hectares – but with borrowed funds.

The real success came at the end of 2025, when a donor campaign was launched to recover the invested amount: in just 25 days, 359 people answered the call and donated, and the donations even exceeded the required amount of nine thousand euros.

Slavujev lug is located near the river Brzava on the border of two Internationally Important Bird Areas (IBA) – Vršački ritevi and Gornje Potamišje.

It is the home of many strictly protected species – from nightingales and vugs to woodpeckers and brambles. In its immediate vicinity is one of the newer nests of the cruciferous eagle, a critically endangered species.

DZPPS has already taken the first steps to protect and preserve the Nightingale: cameras were recently installed in the forest to record the presence of animals, and together with experts, it is planned to remove invasive trees and plant long-lived, fruit-bearing species that will improve the quality of the forest and habitat.

The action stops at Slavujev lugo: DZPPS continues collecting donations for the purchase and preservation of other forests.

As of Friday, February 6, the number of participants in the campaign reached almost 400. They jointly donated over 10,000 euros, which means that DZPPS, after the purchase of the Nightingale, is slowly collecting funds for subsequent similar actions.

If you want to contribute to their noble cause, read more about Slavujev lugu and the plans of DZPPS at klima101.rs!

Photo: DZPPS