The last Bearded Vulture in the Austrian Hohe Tauern mountains was shot dead in 1880. The reason this bird was wiped out was the mistaken belief that it was a dangerous predator. Now Austria, Italy, France and Switzerland are all trying to reintroduce this species. More than 130 birds have been released into the wild since 1986. The race to have the first Bearded Vulture born in the wild was won by France. In the winter of 1996/1997, the first chick emerged in the Haute-Savoie. Swarovski Optik has made equipment available and supplied an off-road vehicle for the Rauriser Krimml valley, as well as optics for ASTERS in Haute-Savoie.