Mozaic Projects
It all began with the discovery
by Prof. L. Rákosy of the fivefold miracle in
Borşa and Dăbâca communes: the only known site in Europe
harbouring all 5 butterfly species belonging to the rare group of
the Large Blues (Maculinea spp.). They can be
found in extensively-farmed hay meadows, which are a valuable but
threatened element of the cultural landscape of the Hills of Cluj
and an important hotspot of plant diversity worldwide.
These are more than enough reasons
to begin with research and protection of the Maculinea
butterflies and their habitats - which we did by launching the
Mozaic Project I in 2009, funded by the German Federal Foundation
for Environment (DBU). During the last 3 years we studied the
ecological and socio-economic background of the area and the
populations of the butterflies. An important element of the
project was the pilot agri-environment programme for
meadows carried out in 2011, rewarding farmers for the
mowing of selected parcels.
Through the collaboration with the
European Forum on Nature Conservation and Pastoralism (EFNCP) our
activities were complemented with research on agricultural
subsidies, property issues and common land as well as High Nature
Value grasslands. In 2011 a new Site of Community Interest within
the Natura 2000 network was designated including the Borşa and
Dăbâca communities.
June 2012 marked the
beginning of Mozaic Project II. The main aims of the new
project are to improve the pilot agri-environment programme for hay
meadows and introduce small hand-mowing machines into the area. The
collaborations with farmers will be intensified and a monitoring
system for the target species and habitats developed. In this way
we want to continue our contribution to the protection of the
unique hay meadows in the Hills of Cluj.
Facts & Figures
DBU Project Mozaic
I
Project period:
01.08.2009 -
31.07.2012
Project holder:
Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität
Bonn
Cooperation partner: Babes-Bolyai-University
Cluj
Other Partners:
Lepidopterological
Society Romania, Ecouri Verzi Cluj
Project Sponsors: DBU, EFNCP
Project number (DBU): 27559
DBU Project Mozaic II
Project
period:
01.06.2012 - 31.12.2014
Project
holder:
Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn
Partners:
Mozaic Association, Lepidopterological Society Romania
Project
Sponsors:
DBU
Project number (DBU): 30167