Photo: Manfred Aletsee / NABU Aachen

The LIFE BOVAR project is also gaining momentum in the Limburg and Aachen project regions: A good year after the start of the project, the project partners from Aachen (NRW) and South Limburg (NL) met for a joint cross-border working group meeting. In fine weather, almost 50 participants from the Netherlands, Germany and Belgium met in the tranquil town of Scheulden in the Dutch province of Limburg. Franz Blezer led the excursion through a typical Limburg dry valley, the Gerendal, where the habitats of the yellow-bellied toad, a Europe-wide endangered amphibian species, were presented. The participants had an intensive exchange about the causes of danger and protection possibilities during subsequent lectures. Dr. Manfred Aletsee from the NABU Nature Conservation Station Aachen presented the project work in Aachen, Piet Oudejans, project manager of IKL, informed about the status of the project in Limburg. The participants were unanimously convinced that sustainable protection of the yellow-bellied toad and the midwife toad in the Aachen-Limburg region will be achieved through the EU-funded project LIFE BOVAR.