WILDLIFE RESCUE AND CONSERVATION CENTER
PH. Andrea Cortese
A CENTRE AT THE "CENTRE"
The creation of a Wildlife Rescue and Conservation Centre in Sicily.
We are located in the centre of Sicily, coinciding with one of the migration flyways Africa-Europe and vice versa: certainly the most important route for migratory fauna in Italy, and to some extent, central Europe.
The Caltanissetta territory boasts dozens of Nature Reserves, Oases, Demani Forestali, Natura 2000 Network sites and other protected areas, which are home to countless animal species, including particularly protected or rare ones. The strategic importance of a rescue and conservation centre at the 'centre' of Sicily that can provide essential services for rescuing, assisting and caring for fauna is fundamental, in a vast regional territory that has only one regional rescue centre and only two other provincial ones in Messina and Agrigento.
These primary needs to protect the environment and safeguard biodiversity are also recognised at international level by the 'Agenda 2030' for Sustainable Development, the Programme of Action for People, Planet and Prosperity signed on 25 September 2015 by the governments of the 193 UN member states and approved by the UN General Assembly.
In particular, global goal (Goal) 15 concerns the protection and restoration of ecosystems and aims to protect biodiversity, which is fundamental to the health of our Planet and to ensuring a sustainable future for all.
In recent years - even in the absence of any specialised facility - our volunteers have cared for dozens and dozens of injured or distressed animals, providing assistance and transporting them to authorised centres.
Among the species recovered are the Wild Rabbit, the Fox, the White Stork, the Hedgehog, the Jackdaw, the Bog Turtle, the Magpie, the Sparrowhawk, the Jay, the Peregrine Falcon, the Blackbird, the Marsh Harrier, the Black Starling, the Buzzard, the Robin, the Kestrel, the Goldfinch, the Lesser Kestrel, the House Owl, the Owl, the Common Swift, the Pallid Swift, the Swallow, the Little Owl, the Bearded Owl, the Bearded Owl, the Barn Owl, the Red Woodpecker, the Long-eared Owl, the Collared Dove, the Saffron Warbler, the Red-backed Shrike, the Wood Pigeon, the Bittern, the Eurasian Owl and many others.
THE PROJECT
Pursuant to art. 6 of Regional Law 1 September 1997, no. 33 (containing: “Rules for the protection, safeguarding and increase of wild fauna and for the regulation of hunting”), the Region “promotes the rescue, temporary detention, recovery in suitable environments and, where possible, the subsequent release of wild fauna in difficulty. To this end, it promotes the establishment of Recovery Centers, in a number not exceeding one per province, by recognized associations…”. The law also regulates the establishment of “First aid centers” where “the fauna detained there, after initial treatment, must be sent to the regional recovery center for wild fauna”. In Caltanissetta we want to immediately create a First Aid Center for wildlife dedicated to the care and recovery of injured, sick or endangered wild animals. The project includes: - a main unit consisting of the building intended to be converted into administrative offices, a veterinary infirmary and a visitor reception center; - spaces intended for the installation of the structures that will accommodate the specimens that require care, according to the specific regulations established by the Sicilian Region; - outdoor space where aviaries and boxes will be installed - intended for animals with special needs - that guarantee maximum conditions of safety and well-being; - area for the creation of an educational pond and/or tanks, to house turtles and other aquatic animals; - "open workshop" area designed both to host educational activities and the carrying out of educational sessions that require practical lessons, laboratory activities and other activities in contact with nature but in an equipped space. Of considerable interest - from a cultural, social and environmental point of view - is the prospect of making the Center a hub of knowledge and learning, organizing refresher seminars for professionals; information days for the general public on the issues of nature and wildlife conservation; training courses for volunteers on the correct behavior to adopt in the presence of injured fauna; events for the dissemination and knowledge of the rich heritage of biodiversity that characterizes our territories. We need to renovate the two buildings to be used as offices and a visiting room; we need to set up the spaces and equip ourselves with the equipment necessary for the maintenance of the Center.
That is why we ask you to help us with a donation
or with an active collaboration!
Go to fundraising
Go to the collaboration form