
Nature & Wildlife
Wild Donkeys in North Cyprus
The “wild donkeys” of North Cyprus are, strangely enough,
descendants of domestic donkeys that were left to roam over the
Karpaz Peninsula after the 1970s. Donkeys were once important for
the island’s agriculture, carrying olives from the groves and
cereals to the mills, and most families would have at least one
donkey. Then, during the Second World War, the British Army even
used them for transport, as they were so suited to the uneven
landscape.

Today, these wild donkeys are protected by the state and around 500
Karpaz donkeys remain on the remotest parts of the Karpaz panhandle,
a truly wonderful sight to behold.

