Biologists defy Cyprus’ ethnic divide to protect environment

Nicosia, Apr 15 (AP):
There’s something regal in the sprightly step and curious gaze of the long-horn sheep that roam the hills near Varisia, an abandoned village inside a UN buffer zone that cuts across ethnically divided Cyprus. The endangered Mouflon sheep that’s endemic to the eastern Mediterranean island nation is one of many rare plant and animal species that have flourished in this no-man’s land, which stretches for 120 miles (180 kilometers) and divides the island’s breakaway north from its internationally recognized south.
Devoid of human habitation since a 1974 war that spawned the country’s ethnic cleave, the buffer zone has become an unofficial wildlife reserve. Its residents include the threatened Egyptian fruit bat, the bee orchid and the Eurasian Thick-knee, a dwindling species of shorebird also known as a stone-curlew. All have multiplied largely unperturbed. This unlikely refuge has been embraced by two environmental scientists, one Greek Cypriot and one Turkish Cypriot, as an open-air laboratory where complex politics and physical divisions can be put aside to focus on the overriding concern of protecting the parched country’s fragile ecosystem.
Greek Cypriot Iris Charalambidou and Turkish Cypriot Salih Gucel, both biologists, headed a pioneering survey in 2007 that explored the thriving flora and fauna inside the buffer zone. Among the survey’s findings were that some areas in the no-man’s land were important for the birds that use Cyprus as a stopover during spring and autumn migration, like buzzards, ospreys and harriers, as well as the Northern lapwing whose numbers in Europe have been in decline. Another important finding was that of the Cyprus spiny mouse, a rare endemic species not frequently found elsewhere on the island.
The survey garnered international accolades and provided impetus to a budding ecological consciousness-raising on the island. It also underscored the need for cooperation for the sake of what all Cypriots share — their environment.
Located in the island’s remote northwest, Varisia has offered the scientists a deeper understanding of nature’s dynamics in a formerly inhabited area. Abandoned in the wake of a 1974 Turkish invasion prompted by coup aimed at union with Greece, the village’s empty crumbling homes stand as a silent witness to the conflict. But for Gucel, the area speaks volumes about how to ‘be more sensitive toward the environment and to have a common implementation plan and laws’ to protect the entire island’s ecosystem.
The scientists’ efforts to engage experts from both sides of the political divide on environmental protection is an ongoing project. Earlier this year, Gucel became the co-head of the Environmental Committee, a body to promote island-wide idea-sharing on environmental issues.