Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia

According to the monthly monitoring results, migratory game bird hunting in Samukhi Valley poses a serious threat to the implementation of Gazelle Restoration Project. It is noteworthy, that shooting voices scare gazelles, which subsequently leads to the behavioral changes- gazelles start seeking shelter and moving from open areas to shrubby areas in forests, ultimately they are found to be relatively easy to catch by wolves. Therefore, taking into account experts' opinion, the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture made a decision to temporarily ban hunting on migratory birds.
The Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia carries out important measures to restore and protect threatened or endangered species of animals. Gazelle is listed among these species, therefore, measures are carried out in Samukhi Valley in the vicinity of Vashlovani Protected Areas to restore gazelle species. Since 2013, the Gazelle Restoration Project is implemented under the initiative of Caucasus World Wide Fund For Nature (WWF), with the active involvement of the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture and Agency of Protected Areas, close cooperation with the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan and the Government of Germany.
Today, more than 70 species of gazelle are brought from Azerbaijan to Georgia, thereby, gazelles are brought back to their historical habitat in Samukhi valley nearby Vashlovani Protected Areas. It is noteworthy, that gazelles chose their housing environment in Samukhi valley and not Vashlovani Protected Area, in terms of restoration of these species this fact confirms the importance of Samukhi Valley. In 2018, third generation of gazelles were born in Georgia.