Slovakia's Critically Endangered Ground Squirrel Population Doubles While Species Disappears Elsewhere in Europe

Slovakia has become the only European country where the critically endangered European ground squirrel population is experiencing rapid growth, with numbers doubling in recent years. The dramatic increase stems from systematic multi-year conservation efforts led by both non-governmental organizations and state institutions, with the majority of funding coming from European Union sources. However, these successful conservation projects have drawn criticism from government politicians, including Environment Minister Tomáš Taraba of the Slovak National Party, a nominee party that is part of the ruling coalition. Taraba has publicly criticized the previous government's approach to these conservation efforts in interviews about the state environmental fund Slovalco.