On January 10, 8 wisents from four Polish breeding centers were sent on their way to Spain where the European Bison Conservation Center of Spain (EBCC) will take care of them.

The destinations of Polish wisents were the La Serreta kennel club registered in the Bison Pedigree Book and the new kennels near San Rafael – Finca Venta Cornejo y Las Hoyadas. Both premises are located in the Spanish province of Segovia. There are currently 24 wisents in La Serreta, mostly from Poland. This breeding kennel keeps only lowland bison.

The main purpose of the exchange is to increase the current range of the species and to create new sites for the animals. Bison transports are also intended to prevent the mating of closely related animals, which is crucial in the case of breeding a species with such a low genetic variation.

In recent years, nearly 100 Polish wisents have reached the foreign breeding centers and free-ranging herds in Spain, Switzerland, Bulgaria and Romania.

In total, since 1935, over 450 Polish wisents have supported the restitution of this species outside Poland.

Adrian Andrzejewski