„The Carpathian Mountains – the land of migratory fishes” (acronym FISH) is a natural heritage project aimed at the protection and promotion of a common nase and its migration habit in the Sanok Poviat (PL), acting as a lead beneficiary, and Zhydachiv Raion Council (UA) being a project partner.

More about the project, you can find in the Projects tab on our webpage.

In the Polish-Ukrainian part of the Carpathians, we can find many valuable plants and animal species, including the common nase, the fish from the carp family (lat. Chondrostoma nasus). The spectacular migration of this fish to spawning grounds is often compared to the salmon spawning in Alaska and is unique on a European scale. Until recently, the fish was a frequent victim of poachers. However, the protective measures taken by fishery guards practically led to the disappearance of poaching. Nevertheless, this unique animal species still needs protection and its natural spectacle of migration needs to be promoted and turned into a tourist attraction.

The project implementation began on 2^nd January 2020. Due to administration changes in Ukraine and the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, part of the project activities had to be suspended. The Opening Conference in Ukraine and the trainings combined with rafting on the Polish and Ukrainian sides could not be held and were postponed.

Nevertheless, the main objective of the project is to protect the common nase and promote the land of its inhabitants: the Osława and San rivers in Poland, and Stryi river in Ukraine. Therefore, project partners jointly prepared a 20-minute promotional film on the common nase migration:

The film can be watched in one of four languages: English, Polish, Ukrainian and sign language. Also, the shorter version of the film – the trailer is available:

The film was widely promoted on the beneficiaries’ websites and social media and received with great enthusiasm.

Another output of the FISH project is a popular science publication about the nature of the Carpathian Mountains streams and rivers in the Sanok Poviat and the Zhydachiv Raion. The publication, currently being prepared, will be devoted not only to the promotion of natural heritage of the Common nase, but will also present the fauna and flora of the rivers of the Polish-Ukrainian borderland. It will be released in three languages. In addition, the Polish partner purchased a drone that will be used to monitor Osława and San rivers, where the common nase lives. For this purpose, the representatives of the project took part in training, as appropriate permissions are required to operate the drone. After the project implementation, the drone will also be used by the Social Fisheries Guard based in Sanok. Social Fisheries Guard is a volunteer unit that monitors rivers during spawning, controls anglers and cooperates with national services and institutions.

According to the grant contract, the project should be completed by 1^st July 2021.

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