ANIMA – Association for the Protection of Wildlife is an association founded in 2005, by people with many years of experience in the care of wild animals in Greece, as well as by veterinarians, biologists, foresters and friends of nature and wildlife. It works with expert scientists who form the Scientific Committee of the organisation.
The main activity of ANIMA is the care and rehabilitation of wild animals in their natural environment. Given that in Greece there is no governmental body dealing with this subject, ANIMA, along with the other organizations involved in the care of wild animals, meets a basic need for the protection and conservation of wildlife in the country.
Taking in wild animals from all over Greece, it cares for over 7,000 birds, mammals and reptiles annually. Among these animals are many rare and endangered wild species.
Care
ANIMA operates the Wildlife Care Centre in the municipality of Saronikos, which has been licensed by the no. ΕΠΕΝ/ΔΔΔ/54344/1692 decision of 17/5/2023 under Article 14 of the Joint Ministerial Decision (CMD) of the Deputy Ministers of Environment and Energy – Rural Development and Food (Government Gazette B 4744/8-9-2022).
ANIMA collaborates consistently with veterinarians, and its staff includes a permanent specialized veterinarian. X-rays, diagnostic examinations and surgical procedures are carried out in a fully equipped clinic. Head of the Scientific Committee of ANIMA is Dr. Anastasia Komninou, As. Professor of Exotic and Wild Animal Surgery & Medicine at the Department of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.
The treatment is carried out by the experienced staff of ANIMA, who have received special training in managing and treating wild animals, with the assistance of trained volunteers. ANIMA’s staff includes veterinary assistants, biologists, forest protection specialists, etc.
Rehabilitation
Rehabilitating animals in the wild is a process as demanding as treating them or rearing them as chicks.
ANIMA has its own facilities, but also cooperates with other organisations for the rehabilitation of wild animals that have recovered. More specifically, it collaborates with Alkyoni (Wildlife Care Centre in Paros) for the accommodation of large waterfowl, such as pelicans and other species, for which Alkyoni has suitable accommodation facilities. The Attica Zoological Park also has areas with no public access for the accommodation of birds when the need arises.
For the rehabilitation of wild bird chicks, ANIMA has undertaken a series of initiatives that include:
- Working with organic farmers to gradually reintroduce nocturnal predator chicks, which then act as natural predators of rodents.
- Fostering of nocturnal predator chicks by females that cannot be rehabilitated/are disabled.
- The adoption of lesser kestrel chicks by families with a small number of chicks in colonies of the Thessaly plain, in cooperation with the project LIFE for Lesser Kestrel.
- The training of predators a few days before their release in cooperation with experienced falconers.
Release
In the final stage of the release, ANIMA collaborates with a variety of institutions for the release of wild animals in suitable habitats throughout Greece. Prior to the release of wild birds, whenever required and in cooperation with experts, it proceeds to:
- Bird ringing (Hellenic Ringing Centre, Hellenic Ornithological Society, Natural History Museum of Crete)
- Obtaining morphometric data and blood/feather samples for research purposes
Rescues
ANIMA carries out rescues whenever required. The most common cases of rescues include:
- Incidents of injured deer around Parnitha, usually in cooperation with the Forestry Department of Parnitha
- Snake rescues/removals in the urban fabric, in cooperation with the Emergency Services and the Fire Department
- Rescues and removals of wild animals from buildings, motorways etc.
- Protection of chicks at risk of falling from their nests in buildings, e.g. common kestrel chicks.
- Organizing rescue missions in areas affected by natural or man-made disasters, often in cooperation with other institutions and with the participation of trained volunteers and ANIMA’s veterinarian. Particularly after 2021, ANIMA organizes or participates in rescue missions after major fires, and has acquired the necessary expertise and equipment for these situations.
Consulting and training
ANIMA receives a large number of phone calls and messages every day. One of its main activities is to advise citizens and institutions on cases of injured/orphaned wild animals and it also undertakes the training of groups and institutions. In addition:
- It informs through the means at its disposal about the correct approach and management of incidents of injured/newborn wild animals and chicks.
- It gives advice on providing first aid before sending wild animals to it.
- It guides citizens and institutions in cases of locating chicks that can return to their nest or continue to be raised by their parents.
- It trains institutions and citizen groups in wildlife care, but also in specialised topics, e.g. training the Fire Department in reptile identification and handling.
- It trains volunteers and citizens in providing first aid to wild animals.
ANIMA supports organisations that wish to set up a first aid station in their area and cooperate with it.
ANIMA has carried out projects to create a national network of wildlife care volunteers.
Oil spill incidents
ANIMA has a certified trainer for volunteers and volunteer groups in oil spill response, in organizing volunteer groups, assessing the condition of coasts, methods of cleaning coasts, as well as in capturing and providing first aid to oiled wildlife. The training was provided by the leading oil spill response institutions in Europe and the Mediterranean: REMPEC, Cedre and Sea Alarm.
Interventions for nature - Press Releases
ANIMA participates in the publication of Press Releases, in cooperation with other environmental NGOs, on issues related to the protection and conservation of nature and wildlife.
Addressing threats to wildlife
ANIMA actively participates in the realization of actions and the mobilization of institutions for the protection of wildlife. More specifically:
- It receives and cares for wild birds confiscated from illegal wildlife traffickers during Forestry and Federal Wildlife Service operations, until their full recovery.
- It contributes to the response to incidents of electrocution of wild birds in the national power transmission network, through communication with the Hellenic Electricity Distribution Network Operator about the installation of stork nest bases or the repair of nests, where necessary, and about the insulation of sections of the network that have been proven to cause problems for birds (such as the insulation of a section of the power transmission line in Sounio, Attica, after the incident of a mass killing of storks).
- It helps to deal with incidents of bird collisions with glass in large infrastructure and buildings, by providing advice to institutions that seek it.
ANIMA has launched the project “Paratiro” (Observe) with the aim of collecting spatial data on the location of injured or dead animals in order to identify infrastructure or other factors that result in the direct killing or injury of wildlife. It hopes that in the future this data can be used to address threats at the local level.
Research
The care of wild animals from all over Greece, which include over 160 different species of birds, mammals and reptiles/amphibians each year, provides many opportunities for collecting primary data/samples that would otherwise be very difficult to collect. Many of these species are protected by Greek and European legislation and/or are endangered.
Specifically, the research areas to which ANIMA contributes are:
- Statistical data collection
ANIMA has been systematically collecting data on the causes of admissions of wild animals since 2011. This, combined with the large number of animals it admits, allows it to produce statistical data on this subject. You can find the data on wildlife care and species here. ANIMA’s statistical data of fifteen years are analyzed and presented in an article published in 2023 in the Journal for Nature Conservation. - Participation in research projects/actions
ANIMA collaborates with scientific institutions and supports their research activities mainly through collecting and sending feather/tissue/blood samples for genetic analysis and pathogen research, and participating in the placement of transmitters, tags, rings on birds of interest, etc.
ANIMA has invested heavily in the field of scientific research into the causes of wildlife morbidity and mortality. It carries out a wide range of laboratory analyses and the emerging results are extremely interesting.
Citizen science
Since 2014, ANIMA has been implementing a citizen science project in which citizens collect data on incidents of injured and dead wildlife all over Greece. Through this project, important data on the causes of direct killing/injury of wild animals in Greece have been collected and are still being collected.