The interrelation of natural diversity with tourism in Kosovo

1 Introduction

Since the beginning of the 20th century, utilizing the diversity of the living world in the tourism offer and activities assumed a significant role. This participation is still expanding quickly in the first quarter of the twenty-first century. The growth was also influenced by the recommendations made by the Convention on Biological Diversity [1], which emphasized not only the narrow biological context but also the correlation between biodiversity and modern life plans, particularly traditional efforts of nature conservation and economic goals of using biological resources in a sustainable manner. The most comprehensive treatment of geodiversity and biodiversity, as well as their effect on recreation and tourism, was given a positive evaluation by authors Eagles, McCool, and Haynes, noting that “the development of the science of ecology led in the 1960s to a broader understanding of the need for a systematic approach to resource planning and management” [2]. The degree of protection for both living and non-living nature is increasing, according to recent developments. This trend may be seen not only in the increased number of protected areas (PAs) but also in the expansion of their surfaces, which is regarded as a form of sustainability and protection. The significant economic role that PAs play for both developed and developing countries helps to explain the rapid expansion of PAs, particularly in the last decades. In addition to focusing on the primary preservation aims, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) classification system [3] for PAs also includes goals for their use in tourism and recreation. According to Eagles, McCool, and Haynes, the tourism importance of PAs is special “In particular, the economic impact of tourism in PAs emphasizes their community, regional and national importance” [2].

Environment damage caused by industrialization has significantly changed how people perceive nature. Hence, people pay more attention to regions that are unpolluted in terms of the air, water, and land. Such areas are distinguished by the high degree of biodiversity, with forested areas-primarily in mountainous areas – playing a key role. When areas with a high level of biodiversity comply with mountainous areas, their health effects increase in accordance with the resulting climatic changes [4]. Generally speaking, it is believed that tourism and biodiversity complement one another rather than competing with and destroying one another. At the very least, it is asserted that the evaluation of the surfaces to the degree of their protection is done for good purposes and that tourism is regarded as an indicator of economic progress. How influential this is will vary based on a number of societal factors “However, when the best and most interesting natural and cultural sites in a country are placed in a PA framework, there is a natural tendency for people to want to experience these environments” [2]. For this reason and not only “In most park systems in most countries tourism use of parks and PAs increased robustly over the last 100 years” [5]. In relation to this, the aforementioned authors claim that “tourism grew in many parks and became a major element in the culture of society” [2]. This indicates that the dimension of tourism activity has developed to a greater extent than is typically treated and evaluated from an economic standpoint (offer-demand). One particularly noticeable aspect of this trend is the growth of international tourism. In some countries, including the case of Costa Rica, according to Eagles [5], the increase in tourist activity, mainly in natural parks, occurred due to the increase in international tourist flow. A similar form is also observed in the United States. In 2016, there were 37.6 million international visitors, with 35.4% of them visiting national parks (NP) and monuments, up from 33.4% who visited them in 2012. This increase is estimated to have reached 36.7% in 2017 [6].

Is this trend also observed in other countries, including Kosovo? It is not easy to give an opinion on the matter because NP and other PAs do not influence and are not affected by tourism in the same way, in different countries and regions in the world. “NP and PAs exist within a dynamic social and political setting that is sometimes difficult to understand and challenging to predict” cited by Dická et al. [7]. Similarly, Teigland [8] clarifies this dynamic system by giving definitions through three mega-trends: democratization, market ideology, and post-materialism as a Cultural Wave. He claims that “this sociopolitical setting influences both their day-to-day management and the long-term planning of parks,” and the same is true in Kosovo, which is also going through a transitional period. According to the literature to date, it can be concluded that Kosovo and South-Eastern Europe are likewise affected by the good changes in Europe. The lack of planning and poor planning that have followed these delayed processes have caused confusion and decreased the likelihood of success. It is also important to note that Kosovo and some other countries in the region have not yet joined the Natura 2000 network [9].

In this vein, this study incorporates a more thorough and modern approach to the treatment and management of PAs, as stressed by Eagles et al. [2], advocating a stronger link with recreation and tourism as two crucial local and national economic objectives.

The research conducted thus far in this field by local and international authors working together highlighted the specifics of plant and animal diversity, especially the discovery of new and rare species not only for Kosovo and the region but then the species endangered by human activity. The research about the potential of natural diversity, especially biodiversity in the function of the development of tourism in the entire territory of Kosovo, is scarce and insufficient.

Accordingly, as can be seen on the map (Figure 5) and other maps, we specifically selected the Kosovo territory as the study area. The research will demonstrate that this study area shares both unique and common characteristics with the surrounding region and beyond, as will be shown in the following sections.

Based on the findings from the responsible institutions, the degree of protection of natural diversity is sufficiently reflected, but the contribution of protection to the increase in the number of tourists (NT) is absent. In other words, the purpose of the study was to find out whether the natural diversity, especially the protected one, has influenced the increase in tourist motivation for local and foreign tourists?! As the title of this article suggests, it attempts to provide more evidence for the relationship between natural diversity and tourism.

In order to achieve this goal, this article addresses a number of important issues, such as (a) biodiversity of Kosovo and its unique characteristics; (b) rare and endangered species of biodiversity; (c) the relationship between the PAs of nature and tourist flows; (d) the interrelation between relief, forests and PAs, as attractive tourism elements; and (e) issues with NP of Kosovo and other PAs as well as their effects on tourism.

2 Natural diversity, PAs, and tourism

Tourism and biodiversity have many elements in common, and their successful functioning largely depends on building a sound basis for their mutual action.

Freytag and Vietze [10] supported the idea that a high level of biodiversity influences the rise in the participation of foreign tourists by demonstrating through regression analyses that the rate of tourist participation in those countries increases with the level of biodiversity. This was done in the instance of the empirical investigation that was conducted across several countries.

The ecological balance is frequently disrupted by human activity, whether intentionally or unintentionally. In this regard, some of the most detrimental and frequently occurring factors in biodiversity, which are also connected to tourism, include: changes in land use; climate change as a result of anthropogenic factors; different types of pollution (in water, air, and soil); deforestation and land alienation; appearance of invasive species; the continuous growth of the human population; destruction and defragmentation of habitats; urban developments, etc.

The aforementioned concerns are now being carefully addressed in the majority of developed countries with adequate plans of management and their control. In light of these concerns, it has been deemed a positive endeavor that the PAs fund is increased on a national, regional, and international level. (Is Kosovo a good model in this situation?) These factors support one another in the context of tourism). According to Eagles, one of 16 influential trends for PAs is that “Parks will continue to emerge as cultural icons” [5]. Depending on the country and various socio-cultural circumstances, some of them eventually become symbols of national identity [5]. While regardless of whether or not this level is reached, it is acknowledged that those environments, at least, have natural tendencies that people should experience [2]. However, once they are listed as a Ramsar Wetland, World Heritage, or Biosphere Reserve, there is greater international demand for improved quality management [5]. Both nature and culture, on the one hand, as well as tourism as an industry, tend to benefit from this healthy and natural relationship.

3 Methods and materials

The study required the application of a number of research methods, beginning with the examination and review of the literature, as follows.

International literature referred to areas, regions, and countries that represent good models of management and use of PAs for tourism development, based on sustainability principles [2,5,11], and its relationship with biodiversity [10]. The same was quite useful and enabled comparison in the form of a mirror for Kosovo, where the efforts are positive but completely initial and still far from sustainability. The three mega trends discussed above by Gartner and Lime [11] serve as a comparative theoretical basis for the degree of realization of PAs management objectives. Eagles [5] analyzed in considerable detail the 16 expected influencing trends of tourism in PAs, as areas with tourism potential. It is difficult to predict when and how good their effects will be, and not all of them can be realized through this study. However, some of them were rather encouraging and appeared to pre-inform expectations that could possibly happen in NP and other PAs in Kosovo.

The lack of ecosystem services in Kosovo was demonstrated using Polasky’s [12] Ecosystem Services Theory, and this very issue will be addressed as a major concern in Kosovo. Garret Hardin’s (1968) “Tragedy of the Common” states that everyone seeks to benefit from nature (from the commons to nobody’s), cited by Gentajaya [13], but tragically, this is typically the option that is served to the environment and the places where we live.

The following national (local) literature was consulted for the assessment of the current state of PAs management according to the IUCN, including their number, the area they occupy, and the effectiveness of the protection measures taken in the Republic of Kosovo. These included scientific works, reports, brochures, and online information from agencies, institutes, and responsible ministries, among others [14,15,16,17,18]. These sources, among which we highlight [19], provide a decent overview of the progress that has been made for the protection of nature, but at the same time highlight the shortcomings of achieving the objectives for the protection of rare and threatened species, as well as the challenges associated with the implementation of conservation and other purposes. The previously stated literature demonstrates deficiencies with regard to rare and endangered species. Accordingly, they were first published in their complete form in the special publications of the Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning (MESP), such as Millaku et al. [14] and Ibrahimi et al. [15], as well as in other individual studies, see [20,21,22]. There are studies reporting newly discovered species cf. [23,24]. Similarly, contributions are evidenced in the field of geodiversity, a part of which, in the form of a summary study for their conservation until 2010, appeared in the study of Bajraktari et al. [25] as well as in Bajraktari and Behrami [26] but progress was also noted in its protection as it was also reflected in the list of the Ministry of Defense [27]. But is this development sufficient in terms of quantity and area, and is it a sign of a desirable condition in accordance with the management matrix of conservation objectives for PAs [3,28]? Through a review of the literature of the studies previously conducted in Kosovo, findings from interviews, and peripheral media sources such as the New York Times and The Guardian, this resulted to be complicated and, as will be seen in the next sections, the problems were different.

As a theoretical, measuring, and comparative basis for this purpose, among others, the contributions of Eagles et al. [2] were used. Among the nine management purposes of PAs according to the IUCN, they put the “tourist and recreation” objective high in the management priority.

In order to achieve the objective for the PAs of nature against tourist movements (c), our research concentrated on secondary/quantitative data from sources like Kosovo Agency of Statistics (KAS) [29,30,31], which allowed us to analyze the NT at the national and municipal levels and make comparisons across the region [32,33,34], as well as further afield as in European Environment Agency [35] and European Commission [36]. The secondary data in the study were analyzed using two statistical methods, namely the Basic Index and Spearman’s Correlation. In this article, we analyzed the management of NP and other PAs. Data on visitors (in terms of quantity and quality) are considered “windows of success” for future medium and long-term planning. The references of the American authors cited below served as a measure of comparison and encouragement to support the degree of application of data collection methodologies in PAs. For the situation in the US National Forests, they noted “two primary information needs for managing recreation areas and the visitors to those areas are: (1) good estimates of visitation volume, and (2) accurate descriptions of visitor characteristics, such as length of stay, frequency of visit, and primary activity” [37]. Are these data generated in other NPs and Pas of Kosovo, as was the case with the geomonuments at Gadime Cave [38] and Radavci Cave [39]? Due to the lack of specific data from secondary sources and precisely to fill this gap, in addition to the quantitative method, the qualitative method was also used. According to Overall [40], each method has advantages and disadvatages, but their combination was required to achieve the study’s goals. According to Lindsay [41], geographers are free to employ multiple research approaches in order to fulfill the study objectives. In this setting, the researchers were encouraged to conduct a number of semi-structured interviews (List of interviews) [38,39,42,43,44,45,46,47,48]. Generally speaking, it is believed that qualitative methods give researchers the chance to thoroughly examine the problems, and in this particular case, this helped us for natural places with high tourist values. The decision to use this approach also assisted us in coming to conclusions, allowing us to address problems in the future when there is a need for improvement and give practical solutions. The interviewees were carefully chosen in order to accomplish this. Their selection was hierarchical, from heads of high-level institutions up to those in operational roles (from management to implementers) and thematic, pertaining to the fild of environmental protection, advocates of the development of tourism and nature preservation, and representatives of associations and federations in charge of recreation and tourism, among others. The idea to carry out such a study, especially for those areas and systems that have the greatest influence on tourism, has started ever since 2013/14, during doctoral studies [49]. Thus, for this reason and for the same purpose, four interviews were conducted in the period 2013–14, while the other five were conducted in the period 2019–22 (List of interviews). The lengthy interval between the first and second interviews did not pose a problem for the research. They were used for those purposes in the study as time did not affect their answers. A total of 9 interviews were conducted, while the coverage of the study area was good (Prishtinë, Pejë, Gjakovë, Gjilan, Lipjan). All interviewees were recorded using the direct method, face-to-face (with the exception of Interview 9 [48], which was performed over the phone). Depending on the circumstances, the actual interviews ranged in length from roughly 30 min to over an hour. The interviewees were informed about the non-commercial nature of the study and about the preservation of their anonymity. They declared themselves open to any questions while only one of them asked to be anonymous, Interview 3 [41]. Despite having more questions overall, the interview was organized into four key sections. The first section contains the interviewees’ basic information; the second section discusses nature protection; the third section discusses the influence of PAs and, separately, NPs on tourism; and the fourth section discusses the primary benefits and drawbacks of nature protection and using it for tourist and recreational needs. Following the transcription of the recorded interviews, all results were extracted in accordance with the sequence and specifications of the study. The choice of this method helped in drawing conclusions so that in the future the problems are addressed where the needs for improvement and concrete interventions are presented.

The fact that we, as researchers, are Kosovo residents was also advantageous because it made it easier for us to visit and closely evaluate the tourist areas included in the study, by incorporating some components of ethnographic methodology. This not only allowed interviews, but as Overall [40] also states, it also enabled the observation of the participants’ behaviors in the study areas.

Due to the relief variety that the country has, the forest cover takes on special touristic importance. The forest cover maps that we produced using the 2018 CORINE Land Cover (CLC) database [50], in accordance with the third category (III) of the forest categorization [51], were therefore chosen for the purposes of this work. This method made it possible to compare the forest areas against PAs.

4 Results

4.1 Natural diversity in Kosovo, the relationship with tourism

4.1.1 Plant species, specific species and their general condition

The region of Kosovo contains a wide variety of plants and animals which are rare and unique for the biodiversity of the Balkans and Europe in general thanks to the collaboration of the shaping factors of vegetation in general, and flora and fauna in particular [20]. For these reasons, the territory of the country is represented by the structure of biodiversity, which in some cases is presented with genetic diversity.

According to general estimations, Kosovo contains roughly 25% of the flora of the Balkans and about 18% of the flora of Europe. Only in the Sharri Mountains, 86 species of plants are declared of international importance, 26 species are included in the Red List of Europe, while 32 species of plants are listed on the IUCN of endangered species. Based on some preliminary research, 797 types of vascular plants are identified in the Albanian Alps, where 128 of them are considered endemic [17].

The data show that they are present in the region in a satisfactory and quite competitive amount. However, how about their health and stability as a species, given that they were endangered? In an effort to give a more comprehensive picture of the endangered species in Kosovo, some of which are also present in the Balkans, Europe, and the World, we made an effort to present the most recent official state of the botanical investigations, conducted by Millaku et al. [14].

As shown in Table 1, there are 237 endangered taxa in total. A total of 132 of these are found in the Balkans, 24 are found worldwide, and 17 are found in Europe.

Table 1

Number of plant species according to IUCN Red List categories

IUCN Red List categories	Number of species (Kosovo)	The number of endemic species of the Balkans	The number of species included in the Red Book of the World	The number of species included in the Red Book of Europe
Extinct (EX)	1	/	/	/
Extinct in the wild (EW)	1	/	/	/
Critically endangered (CR)	61	32	3	6
Endangered (EN)	86	45	9	6
Vulnerable (VU)	19	11	3	3
Near threatened (NT)	34	23	5	1
Least concern (LC)	35	21	4	1
Total number of species	237	132	24	17

Source: Red Book of the Vascular Flora of the Republic of Kosovo [14].

Referring to the above data (Table 1), 237 species are endangered while 61 species are critically endangered (CR). Endangered species are highly sensitive to human activity. Therefore, precisely for this reason, the areas where these species develop should not become a direct tourist target. But indirectly they enable tourist operators to complete their tourist packages with data, as well as tourist guides. Based on the results of the research, it became clear that tour operators know very little about endangered species (based on interviews). The degree of risk to endangered species is always present in the absence of this knowledge.

Some of the rare, endemic, and important species are Pinus heldreichii, Pinus peuce, Taxus baccata (Common yew), Pinus mugo (ivy), Rhododendron ferrugineum (rhododendron), Achillea alexandri, Dianthus scardicus (Sharri’s carnation), Bornmuellera dieckii (Degen’s Bornmulera), Viola grisebachina, Crocus scardicus (Sharri’s crocus), and many others.

4.1.2 Fauna and its geographical-tourist features

Thanks to the aforementioned ecological conditions, the fauna of the territory of Kosovo consists of significant species. Based on the latest studies, summarized in the Red Book of the Fauna of Kosovo [15], there is evidence of 306 species of animals that are widespread in different locations, in the territory of the country. According to experts, their number is believed to be even greater. This is at least hinted at, based on the processes of current studies, stated according to the Kosovo Agency for Environment Protection (KAEP) [52].

The number of species is significant from a tourism perspective and is frequently used to classify countries using a scale of biodiversity, designating the countries with the highest biodiversity as more acceptable for tourists. It becomes even more appealing and interesting when a portion of it is endemic to Kosovo and the surrounding area. A major portion of animal species in Kosovo are endemic, according to research on various species of the region. As an example, the case based on Ibrahimi et al. [15] where the five species of the Pleoceptera group of insects, which unfortunately are also in the CR category, are entirely endemic to the Balkans. Similarly, other groups of animals with their respective species are presented as endemic.

Due to their specific and touristic value, we also appreciated the existence of some rare and importannt animal species. The authors Mustafa and Ibrahimi [53] distinguished: Lynx lynx balcanicus (Balkan lynx), Rupicapra rupicapra balcanica (Balkan wild goat), Ursus arctos (brown bear), many species of reptiles, birds, amphibians, butterflies, insects, and other taxonomic groups.

4.1.2.1 Hunting versus tourism and nature protection

As opposed to higher levels of biodiversity, hunting is frequently presented as a forest sector and not only, which is often presented as an indicator of the level of biodiversity in a country. This is approximately how the role of hunting is presented with balances and losses in biodiversity, according to the 2016–20 Action Plan and the 2011–20 Strategy [54].

There are two reasons why we deal with hunting here while we are showing the faunal resources of the country.

The first has to do with the fact clarified in the paragraph above where the dual role of hunting is emphasized, i.e. the balancing role of the diversity of organisms (the number of species) and the genetic diversity (the number within the species), and cases when hunting, if not properly managed and evaluated, unfortunately becomes the cause of the loss of species or a species.

The second reason has to do with the role that this activity can play in the organization of sports, recreational, and tourist life. The tourist component is suspended as long as this sector does not generate proper and organized activities. Hunting: sport, recreation, and activity (which in particular becomes more popular in Kosovo in the winter season) are practiced legally since the law for this activity was approved, Law No. 02/L-53 [55]. The hunting season in Kosovo is mainly concentrated in autumn and winter. This is how it is at least formally defined by the MAFRD (Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Rural Development), mainly in Article 5 of the Administrative Instruction for the Hunting Season [56] and more specifically with special annual decisions such as the example: (1) 2015–2016 season [57] and (2) 2016–2017 season [58]. Based on the dominant relief conditions, hunting in Kosovo is used in areas with plain, hilly, and mountainous relief. In the territory of Kosovo, the following wild animals are mainly found: gulps, rabbits, wild boars, roe deer, wild goats, lynxes, foxes, wolves, bears, and four other species (cited the Department of Forestry in the Biodiversity Action Plan 2016–20, MESP) [54].

Wildlife areas (Figure 1) depend mainly on altitude, forest type, and other ecological and local characteristics. Some of the most popular species of tourist interest are shown: the wild goat (Alpine Alps) and the ibex (Sharr Mountains), which are found only in these two mountains and, unlike other types of wild animals, both are protected as Strict Nature Reserves, as the MESP reports show [18,59]. Additionally, the following appears: (a) bears (brown bears in Kosovo) can also be found in other mountains; (b) roe deer can be found in the aforementioned mountains (up to a certain height) as well as in other mountains like the Eastern Mountains of Kosovo, the Karadak, and Kopaunik Mountains; (c) fox and wolf in areas with medium altitude (Lowland of Kosovo, Llap, Drenica, etc.); and (d) pig and rabbit, especially the latter, is found in almost all parts of Kosovo, except for high-altitude areas in specific mountainous conditions. The rabbit is very familiar in the plain areas with pastures and agricultural crops, while the fox and the wolf mainly in the hilly-mountainous areas combined between forests and pastures.

Figure 1

Vertical extent (by height) of wild animals in Kosovo. Source: [54].

According to the reports of the Department of Forestry of MAFRD, only the wild boars are in good condition in terms of their number (No. 3), but the lynx, geese, deer, and wild goat each had a limited number of this kind and were therefore in poor condition (No. 1) [54]. The same report, as well as earlier MESP reports, demonstrate that Kosovo has favorable conditions for the development of hunting. The establishment of (a) joint hunting; (b) special hunting; and (c) private hunting is permitted by the hunting law (Law No. 02/L-53) [55]. Despite the fact that 29 cooperative hunting sites were formally established [54], only 8 out of 23 municipalities offered 12 sites for joint hunting management in the last 10 years (a). These reports also demonstrate the existence of two special hunting areas and the absence of private hunting zones (c). Our research revealed that the two distinct areas (b) at least formally had a more regulated condition, with the exception of Blinaja, which has a longer history which was founded in 1955 and re-established in 2009 by the MAFRD [60]. Regarding Blinaja, the results showed that despite several repeated efforts for several years of management plans, such as 1986–1996, 1996–2006, and the Wildlife Management Plan 2008–2018, as presented in the document “Forest Management Plan” [61], the same are still closely related to the objective of protection. Thus, they remain far from the need for multiplicative, educational, cultural, recreational, and touristic use of the reserve. This is also evident in the online public displays of the organizations in charge of their management, the Kosovo Forestry Agency (KFA) [62] and MAFRD [63].

4.1.2.2 Diversity of aquatic-aquaculture fauna

The flowing waters, rivers, and ravines of Kosovo have a favorable number of species which represent the stock of fish in Kosovo. What are these types of aquatic fauna, in which water bodies are they widespread, and is their current stock decreasing, stagnating, or increasing?

Among the most popular types of fish are: Salmo trutta fario (mountain trout), ang. (brook trout), sk. (potočna pastrmka), Cyprinus carpio, (carp), ang (carp), sk. (Šaran), Carasius carasius (karasi), fr. (carassin), sk. (babuska karas). Acclimatized in Kosovo in 1959, Leuciscus cephalus albys (snake), ang. (courgette) [48].

The richest areas with fish in Kosovo are rivers such as Drini i Bardhë with its tributaries Bistrica of Peja and Deçani, etc., Ibri, Sitnica with its tributaries Llapi and Drenica, Lepenci, and Morava e Binça. From the lakes, there are artificial accumulations such as Gazivoda (Ujmani), Batllava, and Radoniqi (Figure 2). Areas of special interest include (1) the end of the Drin i Bardhë river where the lake of Vërmica appears and (2) the Hencit-Radeva wetland. These two areas were of even more interest due to their status as natural PAs. The first is a Nature Park (2015) and the second is a Special Bird PA (2014) as defined in the official MESP report [27,52].

The waters of Kosovo are what they have been for at least four decades in terms of quantity and area, so obviously the fish fund should have increased or at least remained the same, but this has not happened in Kosovo. Its causes (sometimes unfair) can be traced back to historical and current social, political, economic, and security circumstances in Kosovo. Strong intrusions in Kosovo’s rivers and streams in general occurred both before and, especially, after the war (1998–1999). Pollution from sewage discharges, destruction, and physical interference in river beds from gravel exstraction, other industrial pollution as well as illegal fishing, are the main causes that have brought the fish stock and their species to a critical situation [46]. “The amount of fish has decreased to a great extent, and certain types of fish have been removed (almost to the point of extinction) from some rivers” [47] (Figure 2).

Figure 2

The main water bodies in Kosovo. Source: same as in Table 1.

Examples include the Lepenci, Drini i Bardhë, and Peja rivers, where mountain trout, also known as autochthonous trout, was a common species. In addition to the damages, our research also encountered two positive elements which increase the chances for more success of this sector and with it also of the tourist activity. The Federation of Sports and Recreational Fisheries first registered in the 1970s. After ceasing for a while, it was revived and re-registered in 2003. The FPSRK was accepted into the FIPSED – Federation Internationale De La Peche Sportive – International Sports Fishing Federation on April 25, 2013 [47]. The Lepenc River fishing activities in 2013 and 2015 were considered enjoyable activities, as was shown in Interview 8 [47].

4.2 PAs of nature, contributors to tourist movements!?

In an attempt to address global environmental demands, as well as local ones, since the 50s of the 20th century, Kosovo started with the protection of various natural areas. The results of the research showed that the permanent increase in PAs had the following characteristics:

1. The first period, year 1950 (the beginning of protection, first PAs);

2. The second period, from the 70s to the 80s (significant increase of PAs);

3. The third period, from 2000 to 2013 (the great increase of PAs); the biggest increase was recorded after the year 2000 [16,18], namely from 4.26% of the country’s territory in 2003 to 10.9% in 2013 as quoted by the MESP reports of 2005, 2008, and 2015 Veselaj and Mustafa [19].

4. The fourth period, from 2013 to 2017 (average increase of PAs); in 2017, Kosovo had 184 PAs that occupied 11.56% of Kosovo’s surface [18].

5. The 5th period, from 2017 to 2021 (average growth of PAs); currently, (2021) Kosovo has 248 PAs, which occupy 12.25% of its surface [27].

We believed that learning about horizontal (regional) changes will provide a more comprehensive picture of the PA condition in the studied area. Referring to resources, the situation in the region is as follows: Serbia has 8.14% of the country’s surface protected (OECM, 2023) [32]; North Macedonia 5.39% [34]; Montenegro 18.27% [35]; and Albania 21% [33]. Although Kosovo surpasses Serbia, it is still a long way from Albania, which took a progressive step by declaring the Vjosa river NP as the only wild in Europe, as reported by The Guardian [65] and Euronews [66].

In response to a question regarding the intended level of protection for the area, Mr. Bajraktari [42] stated that the objective is to achieve a protection level of 18% in 2030, which is the same amount of protection as the Natura 2000 ecological network now has at the EU level [9]. While it is quite far from the objective of the Natura 2000 network, which, through the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030, aims to reach 30% participation in land and water protection in 2030 [36].

4.2.1 PA-tourist relationship

As stated in Section 4.2, there was a growth dynamic for PAs. This progress can be shown differently. If we divide it into two time periods, before and after the war (1999), 11.3% of the natural PAs are from the first period (1957–2000) and 88.7% are from the second period, which is after 2006 (2006–2021).

We were also interested to see the developments in the field of tourism, in terms of data collection and the results they show. For various reasons, no statistics on the NT were realized in Kosovo before 2008. Research based on this source [31] proves this conclusion on the one hand and the institutional impotence to collect data on tourists before 2008, on the other hand.

From this point forward, the Statistics Agency of Kosovo (ASK) used a methodology in which statistics were retrieved on a monthly and quarterly basis for each year [29,30]. They are believed to be particularly interesting when compared to the PA number. We correlated the variables with the assumption that although their development might have a statistical correlation and a logical connection, their dependence on one another was not fully understood: PAs (x) with the NT (y) by using Spearman’s correlation. To follow the development of the two variables and each one separately, the Basic Index was also calculated from 2008 to 2021 (the year 2008 is taken as the basis for the calculation) (Table 2).

Table 2

Basic index and Spearman’s correlation for the number of PAs and NT for the period 2008–2021, in Kosovo

		PAs		NT
No.	Years	No. of PA (x)	Basic index	No. of tourists (y)	Basic index
1	2008	84	100	24,616	100
2	2009	84	100	36,318	148
3	2010	84	100	34,382	140
4	2011	85	101	30,349	123
5	2012	86	102	48,790	198
6	2013	87	104	50,074	203
7	2014	105	125	61,313	249
8	2015	137	163	79,238	322
9	2016	173	206	163,986	666
10	2017	184	219	162,234	659
11	2018	194	231	192,761	783
12	2019	210	250	177,332	720
13	2020	217	258	85,215	346
14	2021	248	295	225,627	917
Total		248		1,372,235
Spearman correlation					0.925

Source: [27,30,67].

The analysis showed that the positive correlation with a value of 0.925 is quite high. The results of Spearman’s correlation and significance test are presented in Table 3. We tested whether this correlation is significantly different from zero. Our test yielded a result of ρ < 0.001, which means that the null hypothesis (H0) is rejected. The alternative hypothesis (Ha) supports the relationship between PAs and NTs.

Table 3

Speraman’s correlation results and significance test by SPSS for the number of PAs and NTs for the period 2008–2021, in Kosovo

Correlations	PAs	NT
Spearman’s rho	PAs	Correlation coefficient	1.000	0.925**
		Sig. (2-tailed)		0.000
		N	14	14
	NT	Correlation coefficient	0.925**	1.000
		Sig. (2-tailed)	0.000
		N	14	14

**Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).

Regarding the basic index values, they indicate growth in 2008, yet there is a growth difference in their development. NTs have registered a higher growth index of 917% than the increase in PAs, which is just 295% (Table 2 and Figure 3).

Figure 3

Progress in increasing number of natural PAs and NTs in Kosovo. Source: same as in Table 1.

When analyzing the dynamics of the progress in the number of PAs and visitors, two issues were identified. The first is the fact that variables start to expand more rapidly in the second half of the observed data period than in the first (for tourists in 2012 and PAs in 2014). Second, NT grew more quickly and more significantly than PA, notably starting in 2016, which is why the difference can be seen in the graph (Figure 3).

4.2.2 The degree of protection of geodiversity values in Kosovo

Many geoheritage sites can be tourist destinations and provide local and regional economic benefits [68]. While the geodiversity of a country necessitates assessment, it remains the responsibility of the society to make this wealth a part of the geoheritage where protection takes the best meaning, completing the practice of geoconservation in its broadest sense. According to the research – part of which will be revealed later – the notion of geoconservation, which is about protection, is successfully achieved to a good level in Kosovo. While other segments, like the administration of locations and landscapes, are extremely deficient and discouraging (more in Section 4.3). In accordance with the definitions of geoheritage, this has the meaning of educating and making use of these values for other parties through which tourism is evaluated with a lot of beneficial interest. It is this “postulate” that should be the objective of the action and not the declaration, which brings the institutions in the Republic of Kosovo to responsibility.

It is widely accepted that geodiversity provides a good natural base for biodiversity to find favorable ecological conditions and develop on these conditions. Despite being a small country, Kosovo does not lack in diversity. The territory of the country offers more than is widely valorized, from the old mountains in the east to the modern ones in the west, from the limestones all over the place to the more localized volcanics in the north.

Based on this, the study first concentrated on data regarding the level of its protection, through which the level of recognition and initial assessment of it is inferred to some extent. The findings revealed that Kosovo had 248 PAs [27] in 2021 (Table 2). There were 54 (21.7%) of those that had geoheritage content. There are ten instances of places where geoheritage values are combined with other botanical, landscape, and aesthetics features. Geoheritage values comprise 25.8% of the national list of PAs in this format.

Based on the results of the interviews (List of interviews), our research found additional opportunities for increasing geoheritage values through the potential of geodiversity. To this end, the interviewee, Mr. Bajraktari [42] enumerated a number of geomonuments (monuments with hydrological, hydrogeological, and geomorphological attributes) that are currently going through the institutional procedure to be protected. The caves in the village of Shkozë, the natural spring in the village of Vërmicë in the municipality of Prizren, and the Stone of Busovata in Ruboc of the municipality of Kamenica are expected to increase the country’s exposure of geodiversity and geoheritage will be more highly represented on the national list of PAs. According to the same [42] and [26], the speleological potential in the country seems to be higher than the current activity for protection. However, it seems like there have not been many prospects for multiple uses, like tourism and recreation, up until now. According to Interviews [38,39], Gadime Cave and Radavci Cave are popular tourist sites. These caves, as well as some other PAs, show how appropriate and vital it is to exploit them for tourism and recreation.

4.2.3 The relationship between PAs, relief, and forests, as attractive tourist areas

Hilly-mountainous morphological units include the Albanian Alps, the Sharri Mountains with Jezerc, Nerodime, and Carraleva, the Black Mountain of Skopje (Karadaku), the Eastern Mountains, the Kopaunik Mountains, and the Central Mountains. These units are primarily represented by forest vegetation, which includes some of the rarest and most significant species in the nation (Figure 4b). The correlation between the height and stretch of low and high forest vegetation in Kosovo is very high and positive [49]. This can be analyzed from the analytical and comparative view of the land cover and relief maps (Figure 4a and b). From there it can be seen that the most forest areas are located in the hilly and mountainous regions of the country.

Figure 4

(a) Map of the main morphological units of Kosovo. (b) Stretch of forests in Kosovo, based on CLC 2018 inventory.

The same morphological units are of interest for nature-based tourism, eco-tourism, etc. The Albanian Alps (the western part of Kosovo) and the Sharr Mountains (the southern part of Kosovo) (Figure 4a) are precisely the mountain ranges with the largest plant and animal formations in Kosovo (as was also emphasized in Section 4.1.1). A portion of these mountains is protected in various ways because of their worth. Therefore, there is yet another positive correlation with hilly mountain regions, such as two NPs, 14 of Kosovo’s 15 strict reserves, as classified by the IUCN, are located there, specifically in NPs Sharr and Bjeshket e Nemuna, as well as a number of other natural landmarks (Figure 5).

Figure 5

Natural PAs of Kosovo.

In Kosovo, there are numerous types of woody plants, including poplar, bush, willows, hornbeam, beech, ash, conifer woods, etc., commonly close to the highland pastures, depending on altitude and the degree of continentality.

According to calculations made by KFA for the Kosovo Forest Inventory project, there were approximately 481,000 ha of forest land in Kosovo in 2013 [69]. According to Bojaxhi [70], this corresponds to around 44.7% of the total area of the country.

Using the PAs vector base and CLC data for forests, we concluded that 78 out of 248 PAs, or 31.5%, are located in these regions (if not entirely, then at least partially) [50]. On the other hand, 16% (69,239.24 ha) of Kosovo’s forestland is protected.

In Kosovo, vertical vegetation belts are easily distinguishable, particularly in mountains that are higher than 1,000 m. In this instance, in the Sharr Mountains, the Albanian Alps, and Kopaunik, the floors of shrubs and oaks, beech and similar woods, conifers, and finally the herbaceous flora of alpine pastures can be recognized more clearly than in other mountains. The fact that they are dependent on pedo-climatic determining factors that vary from one location to another explains why their levels are not uniform in all of the mountains mentioned.

5 Discussion

Based on evaluations made thus far by the government and the general public, how significant is nature in Kosovo, taking into account things like the protection of natural areas, multiple uses of natural areas, as well as their protection? Did these evaluations serve as motivation for the increase of domestic and international tourists? Paraphrased from the Introduction section, this presented one of the main aims of the study.

In line with Veselaj and Mustafa [19], our study showed that there was a progressive continuity of success in nature protection even in the last decade. Protection does not guarantee preservation, while the results showed that the latter was lacking, as Interviews 1 and 2 confirm [42,43]. Lack of protection causes a number of problems, the effects of which are counterproductive to the goal of protection. Based mostly on interviews, the findings show that PAs were not a sufficient motivation for NT increase in these conditions due to a lack of employees, ideas for good administration, and a notable lack of exposure of the PAs to both domestic and foreign tourists.

The discussion of natural diversity in relation to tourism highlighted the fact that Kosovo is home to a sizable number of plant and animal species, some of which are rare and endemic to Kosovo and the Balkans, but some of which are endangered to varying degrees [14,15,17]. An interpretation of the endangered species of any category leads to a conclusion that the same species become more and more demanding for humanity. Endangerment has two sides: on the one hand, concern over their loss (loss is a measure of where mankind is today with his activity) and, on the other hand, the fact that endangered species draw a particular group of visitors (nature lovers, scientist-botanists, and others) who value natural values in general, especially when they are in danger of disappearing.

The existence of such biodiversity indicates that there is space for improving interest and care for it. Therefore, the research made an overview of the progress of the protection. From 84 PAs in 2008 [67], the number reached 248 in 2021 [27], protecting 2.25% of the national territory.

The findings showed that with this level of protection, Kosovo is behind North Macedonia by 3% [34], Montenegro is behind Albania by 6.7% [33], and Kosovo is ahead of Serbia by 4% [32]. The ambition of increasing protection to 18% by 2030, as stated in Interview 1 [42], is encouraging but still falls short of the EU target [36].

In their studies, Freytag and Vietze [10] established that as levels of biodiversity of the countries rise, so do their tourist populations. Our investigation agreed in some respects with the authors’ claims, but there were also differences. In accordance with KAS and KAEP [27,30], the result (0.96) demonstrated the existence of a relationship between natural diversity (particularly biodiversity) and visitors for the observed period of 2008–2021. These findings should be considered, although there are several problems that point to some discrepancies in the theory. Although there is a statistical correlation between the number of PAs and the NT, the results of the Basic Index did not convince us that this had any impact on the increase of NT. All of the respondents agreed in principle that the more nature is protected, the more opportunities the tourism sector has, but the majority of them, particularly interviewees 2 and 5 [43,44], emphasize that other factors, primarily international marketing and the influence of the private sector in this activity, were the main drivers of NT growth. In accordance with interview 2 [43], the travel package “Peaks of the Balkans” managed to be published in some of the most popular mediums worldwide, including the New York Times, Financial Times, The Guardian, etc. They believed that the PAs in general and parks in particular did not have a strong enough influence to significantly affect the development of NT. They claim that the tourists they guide are not very interested in the biological or morphological significance of the park. They claim that they are content with the overall mosaic as a whole, preferably undamaged and without any missing details, which Mr. Hasanramaj [44] thinks would be interesting if they possessed them. Even the other secondary sources that were referenced above for the PA/tourist comparison similarly argue that there is no greater increase in tourists in the regions with more presence of PAs than in other regions in Kosovo [30].

At least in two cases referred to in this paper: USA [6] and the case with Costa Rica studied by Baez, as given in Eagles [5]. For this purpose, two interpretations are drawn from the results of the study area:

The first example demonstrates that this growth trend, as happened in the cited cases, was not observed in our case.

The second example demonstrates that when these natural values are exposed to the public, tourists, and visitors, even in a small case, it can be successful and inspire hope for the future, despite the dissatisfaction resulting from the expected lack of international tourists.

This is proven through the case of the Radavci Cave, the second one open to visitors in Kosovo. Our research verified the presence of foreign and local (from our periodic visits and interview 3 [39]) visitors, as our interviewee says, in the ratio of 5–95% [39].

Beyond the second interpretation, we learned that the missing exposure of natural heritage resources is precisely one of the problems why the increase of international tourists is not happening as in the aforementioned cases referred to. This concern turned out to have two problems. The first one criticizes the institutions, which should have been more imposing and more conscious of clarifying PA values and this is accepted as not achieved by Interview 1 [42]. The second one initially has a dependence on the first one and then presents the defect that is carried by tourist operators, not sufficiently showing the values of PAs, in their packages, intended for tourists. The results for the second problem were based on the statements of the interviewees, some of whom were direct representatives of the tourist operators. The methodological choice was limited by the lack of a more detailed and comprehensive study of the content of the tourist packages of local tourist operators and their partners abroad. This is beyond the scope of this study, so further research is recommended so that, among other things, the reliability of our claims is confirmed or rejected. By comparing the contributions of the authors examined in this article, it is observed that there is a big gap between their theoretical views and the results in the study area. This does not make their theories invalid, on the contrary, they should serve as an incentive for positive actions of the society and the state in Kosovo. According to Eagles et al. [2], PAs are in some ways attractive; therefore, people naturally want to test them. Accordingly, the interviewee [42] believes that it is simpler for foreign tourists to visit a park than go to another location, potentially with the same values but without a name. The same one thinks that it is hard to believe if NP and PAs played the right role for increasing tourist travel. In these conditions, in the face of the majority of the statements of the interviewees who affirm that the parks are far from the desirable tourist impact and the theoretical statements of the referred authors, there are many differences. These are given in Eagles [5], with his claims of the strong growth of park tourism in the last 100 years, of the claims of Eagles et al. [2] that tourism grew in many parks until it became a key element in the culture of society or even as Eagles [5] has pointed out in Trend 16 that NPs often become cultural icons and symbols for communities.

NP in management concepts includes many objectives, among them quite important is data collection. Referred to English et al. [37], data on the number of visitors and other qualitative data are the two basic information for recreation management. From the results of the interviews, separately [42,43], it appears that this is difficult to be achieved at the moment and does not give much hope.

The study showed that exactly the references above were the furthest from reality in the area of our study. We recommend them as long-term orientation destinations for future tourism and environmental policies in Kosovo, although they were presented between 2002 and 2004.

The results of the study showed that in mountainous regions there is a rather impressive correlation between PAs and forests. This relationship seemed quite useful on the one hand because land protection also means protection of forests, while, on the other hand, it is equally discouraging because forests are not well protected and were constantly damaged, the damage incurred falls precisely in these PAs.

Beyond the discussion of PAs, the findings revealed issues with how hunting on land and sports and leisure activities in water are organized. Referring back to Interview 8 [47], Kosovo has the ability to organize fishing operations as a result of joining FIPSED; however, this was not the case. Such issues made it clear why a certain kind of traveler was missing. On the other hand, they show the unsettling condition of surface waterways, whose quality needs to be improved.

6 Conclusions

The efforts of different societies for ways to care for nature began centuries ago and their continuation has resulted in direct mechanisms. Its partial protection, as is the case with the IUCN directives, was selected as an acceptable beneficial consensus for local communities and the wider world.

Kosovo made progress in the protection of nature by applying norms of IUCN which followed after its acceptance in this organization. This positive development was not accompanied by multiplier effects as required by the IUCN objectives nor by the practices referred to in the study. In contrast to them, the study documented that protection as a basic objective dominates other objectives. Therefore, despite all of the difficulties, the study managed to show arguments that tourism and recreation in PAs and especially in NP was unfortunately as developed as in other unprotected lands. The measurement variables showed statistical correlation. But among other things, the actors themselves, both from the management institutions and also the tourist operators, proved that the increases are individual and that PAs are still far from the already known role that they should have.

The lack of exposure of the PAs to the tour operators and, via them, to the tourists, constitutes one of the issues that calls for improvement, according to the literature review and the study findings. Kosovo is not a member of the UN. We singled this out to emphasize the missing handicap and to strongly recommend Kosovo’s membership in international environmental organizations through which it would then be acceptable for any of Kosovo’s PAs to become part of the world heritage list. On the other hand, membership in these groups was assessed in light of their marketing effects and acknowledgment of their principles, both of which inevitably draw more tourists. In order to address these issues, the government must implement a number of reform strategies, including legal, management, and self-commitment. More in-depth studies in highlighting the current shortcomings would complement our limited research on the one hand and give more chances of improvement for tourism as a beneficial activity for the community on the other hand.