Go out into the countryside, enjoy nature, and collaborate with citizen science. This triple purpose bird dayCelebrated on October 1 and 2 by SEO/BirdLife, this time under the motto “Enjoy and get to know the birds that surround youThere will be guided tours, children’s workshops, conferences, bird watching spots and more. “Bird watching” events open to anyone interested in more than fifty locations in Spain.
In this new annual appointment for the enjoyment and knowledge of birds and nature, the organization highlights the knowledge obtained through two publications that allow to know the state of the Spanish avifauna: ‘III Bird Atlas in the Breeding Season‘ and ‘‘The Red Book of the Birds of Spain’.
Atlas contains important information for understanding the subject. Distribution, trends and populations of 450 species detected in Spain in the spring. The data does not call for optimism: More than half of the species evaluated in Spain are in a negative state and 90 are threatened to different degrees.
The publication confirms its presence in Spain eight unique bird species on a global scale and ten other bird species on a European scale. Five of these are threatened at European level and one is even Moorish.fulica cristata), is in critical danger of extinction in our country and therefore in the whole of Europe.
danger of extinction
this endemism It is found worldwide in the Balearic and Canary archipelagos, located in Spain. They are Balearic Warblers (silvia balearic), Canary Chiffchaff (Phylloscopus canariensis), rabid pigeon (columbajunionae), turquoise dove (columba bollii), Balearic minute hand (Puffinus mauretanicus), Gran Canaria blue finch (Fringilla polatzeki), Tenerife blue finch (Fringilla teydea) and Canary stone chat (Saxicola decotiae).
on a European scale, endemism They are species from different habitats such as the ricoti lark found in Spain (Chersophilus duponti), Houbara bustard (Chlamydotis undulata), orange nightingale (Pycnonotus barbatus), field runner (Cursorius cursor), ortega sand chicken (pterocles oriental), Canary Blue Tit (Cyanistes teneriffae), Cape Swift (Apus caffer), Moorish Swift (apus affinis), Barbary warbler (Iduna opaque) and the aforementioned Moorish coot.
All this information can be found in the aforementioned online publication, which has already become an essential tool for bird conservation researchers, publishers, governments and the general public.
For its part, the Red Book of Birds of Spain indicates: 56% of the species species evaluated in Spain are experiencing conservation problems, and 90 of them are within the threat categories of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)..
Species most at risk of extinction include those listed as ‘Critically Endangered’, such as the capercaillie.tetrao urogallus), swamp bunting (Emberiza schoeniclus) or the Balearic minute hand.
Other species are on the list cataloged as ‘Endangered’. This, among others, common quail (coturnix), chicken harrier (circus cyaneus) or gray shrike (Lanius excubitor).
Inadequate protection of birds
The Red Book of the Birds of Spain a “Inadequate conservation of the Spanish avifauna: lack of adequate management plans and an urgent need to adapt the Spanish Endangered Species Catalogue and regional catalogues”.
An example: only seven of the 22 species listed as ‘Endangered’ in the Spanish Endangered Species Catalogue Conservation Strategy approved by law.
Climate change is among the main threats to birds for the first timetogether with pollution, changing ecosystems and intensive farming practices.
“You should keep that in mind Spain has a major responsibility to protect some endemic speciesespecially from the birds of the Canary archipelago, such as the Gran Canaria blue finch or the rabid pigeon,” says SEO/BirdLife.
However, in the European context it is also responsible for others located in Spain. larger and better preserved populationsas in the example of ricoti lard, Iberian sand chicken (Pterocles alchata) or necrophagous birds of prey.
In addition, birds are the faunal group for which the most data is available, which makes them key indicators of the health status of our planet. Thanks to them, we can know the changes that occur, such as in climate change or the loss of biodiversity.
List of events to be developed on Bird Day 2022: https://seo.org/diadelasaves22/
Bird Day 2022 events participation form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdXStYRBMIILXsQnMyaZCINA6K93_TMUpoOjxiu8o4q6BQ9yA/viewform.
III Atlas of Birds in the Breeding Season in Spain: https://atlasaves.seo.org/
Red Book of Birds in Spain: https://www.miteco.gob.es/es/biodiversidad/temas/inventarios-nacionales/lrcompletoparaweb_tcm30-207942.pdf
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