The area is the last preserved part of a primaeval forest that once covered Europe. It is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. European bison were reintroduced there some 90 years ago and are a fragile protected species.
An annual count in the Białowieża Forest is carried out in winter. That is when the animals tend to gather in larger groups at feeding sites and stay there for a time, making counting easier for national park employees, foresters and researchers.
Among those tallied up in the latest count, 70 were young animals born in 2020.
Last year, 770 bison were counted, including 70 young ones.
Experts from the Białowieża National Park said the animals were this year dispersed across more than 80 locations, and that could have meant fewer were spotted than 12 months ago.
(pk/gs)
Source: PAP