Neither the State nor the autonomous communities fulfill their obligations. Most threatened birds in Spain have no conservation plansalthough administrations are required by law to approve them. The complaint appears in the new issue of ‘Birds and Nature’ magazine, edited by SEO/BirdLife magazine, which raises the alarm about the situation experienced by the majority of threatened birds: Only 14 of 50 endangered species have the necessary state strategy.
Only La Rioja, Andalusia and the Balearic Islands have more than half of the approved plans, while Madrid and Navarra are at the opposite pole. Three of the 14 birds with a conservation plan are aquatic (gray turquoise, Moorish chicken And white headed duck) will be joined by brown pochard In the review prepared within the scope of the Life Teal Pardilla project.
The other seven are grouped under the strategy for threatened birds associated with agricultural steppe environments: Ricoti bustard, Eurasian bustard, Montagu’s wild bird, lesser kestrel, Iberian sandpiper, Ortega sandpiper and little bustard. Several threatened endemisms also have this: Iberian imperial eagleWe have a common strategy with Portugal and balearic minute hand waterMoreover osprey And caper flower. In the case of the latter, there were two plans for two existing towns, one in the Cantabrian mountain range and the other in the Pyrenees, but these have already been merged.
“In any case, there appears to be no clear criteria for defining which species are prioritized when developing these state strategies,” warns SEO/BirdLife. Also cataloged species for which Spain has a significant international responsibility, e.g. Egyptian VultureHE black vulture wave Audouin’s seagullIt currently lacks conservation plans.
More violations
These are not the only incompatibilities, because they are also included in the legislation. autonomous Region with plans endemic species. For example, the Canary Islands, which were required to undertake conservation or recovery plans for two dozen taxa, almost half of which are Macaronese endemism, took responsibility for only two: guirre (Canary subspecies of Egyptian vulture) and Gran Canaria finch.
Catalonia, Castilla-La Mancha and Extremadura, which should be concerned with the largest number of plans (for a total of 64, 61 and 53 taxa respectively), are associated with the Canary Islands”poor performance of responsibilityOnly 8% of homework done,” complains SEO/BirdLife.
But they are not “last in the class”: Cantabria and Galicia are happy with 7% of approved plans, despite having far fewer threatened species, 14 and 30 respectively. Even further behind is Navarra, which has approved only 2 of the 39 conservation plans under its jurisdiction. And in the queue, Madrid and historical district gipuzcoa (having competence in this field), There are no confirmed plans.
On the positive side, the autonomous community that has fulfilled its responsibilities in the best way has so far rioja73% of species are covered. However, because it is one of the smallest, it is also the community with the fewest number of species, and most of this is found in collective plans.
After La Rioja Balearic IslandsApproving 62% of approved plans (13 of 21 plans); Andalusiawith 59% (22 out of 37); asturiaswith 53% (19/10) and Valencian Communitywith 42% (16 out of 38). Other autonomous communities are well below this last percentage.
Bird flu
“There is a huge effort from organizations like SEO/BirdLife to get these documents approved and made available. instruments written with the participation of technicians and managersis subject to scrutiny by civil society and They determine the directives and obligations of administrations. in this function, as well as in the management of specific human activities in areas of greatest importance to the species,” the article states.
The magazine also includes a special report on the devoted work of thousands of people. volunteering SEO/BirdLife and their motivations. They are the people who lead the organization’s massive social mobilization: They plant trees, take censuses, clean rivers, fly drones, build nesting boxes, raise awareness in society, travel along power lines, dig up lumps… The NGO guarantees that more and more and that activities are diversified and expanded throughout the region.
The publication also has large doses of birdwatching pleasure and learning through an in-depth article titled ‘With the Owl’s Ear’, which offers a wealth of birdwatching fun and learning experiences. ornithophonies and soundscapes Via QR links. However, the amazing winning photos of the ‘FotoAves’ competition or ‘Identity Book’, thrush, blackbirds And rockers.
This issue’s editorial titled ‘Social Blindness’ takes on a special poetic tone. common troutdeclaration ‘Bird of the Year 2024’He expresses his “sadness at the blindness of society”.
The magazine also reveals the current situation. Bird fluIts deadly global spread preys on seabirds and has already caused thousands of deaths. In addition, it includes searches and news, commemorating three decades of activism and commitment to ‘Renewable Responsible’ energies, and seventy years of activity. to the equipment.
‘Birds and Nature’ Magazine: https://seo.org/revdigital/sources41/AN41.pdf