The emblematic Egyptian vulture is making a comeback after being on the verge of extinction, the Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds (BSPB) has announced. The BSPB has established a record number of 35 nesting territories inhabited by Egyptian vultures, an increase of almost 20% compared to the previous year, Radio Sofia-BNR reports. This means the globally endangered species is going back to the numbers registered in 2008. This increase is the result of the new couples formed in the Eastern Rhodopes and in Northeastern Bulgaria, Volen Akrumarev from BSPB said for Radio Sofia, and added that a hundred years ago there were thousands of couples in Bulgaria after which the species began to decline, until around 10 years ago its population had dwindled down to around 20-24 couples.

• Two Egyptian vultures have hatched in the Rhodopes