Rising temperatures and fires pose the main threats to the brown bear, yet the species has managed to avoid total collapse. In the Cantabrian mountain range, it suffered a sharp decline at the end of the 20th century, dropping from about 50–60 individuals to roughly 370 today.
This progress was announced by Víctor Gutiérrez, coordinator of the Biodiversity Foundation’s conservation and ecosystem restoration program, during a presentation on LIFE Bears’ advances and a future plan in the Caboalles de Arriba area of León, within the Villablino municipality. He emphasized the need to rehabilitate degraded lands, restore healthy ecosystems, and ensure abundant food sources to support the species’ survival (Biodiversity Foundation).
The brown bear remains endangered, but has moved out of the critical category thanks to ongoing, collective social efforts carried out by multiple organizations over the past three decades (Biodiversity Foundation).
“Very vulnerable to global warming”
Yet the species continues to be highly sensitive to climate change. Warmer seasons can reduce hibernation times and lower the availability of wild fruits such as blueberries, which are a key food source for bears in this region (Environmental Research Journal).
The LIFE project aims to strengthen vegetation recovery across eight Natura 2000 sites and includes actions on management and climate adaptation, as well as strategies that balance human use with nature conservation (LIFE Bears program).
Guillermo Palomero, president of the Oso Pardo Foundation (FOP) and project coordinator, stated: “We will plant a total of 150,000 fruit trees and 25,000 chestnut trees at higher elevations,” on private or public farms, under custody agreements that safeguard trees from being disturbed in certain years (Oso Pardo Foundation).
The operation began in October 2020. To date, 36,700 trees have been planted, with a planned end in March 2025. The project aims to establish fruit trees above 900 meters on about 155 hectares, while chestnut trees provided by the Asturias regional government will cover another 55 hectares (FOP).
“A few years ago we believed the bear was gone, that it had disappeared because there were only two population centers. A lot of social work was done to save it,” Palomero noted (Oso Pardo Foundation).
Forestry Works
Eduardo Álvarez, a technician with the Castilla y León Natural Heritage Foundation (FPNCL), explained that the project seeks not only to plant trees but also to improve the food base of existing forests through forestry actions. The aim is to ensure trees receive more light and bear better fruit by removing competing vegetation and monitoring responses to different scenarios in several forests across Palencia and León, including clearings and pastures (FPNCL).
Forest engineer María Gómez of the Oso Pardo Foundation noted that mixed stands—various fruit species better adapted to climate change—will be introduced to increase long-term resilience of the landscape (FOP).
In Palacios del Sil, García explained that the planting plan includes cherry, apple, hazelnut, birch, mountain ash, and blackberry species, recognizing the fast-growing nature and fruit similarity of certain varieties. The chestnuts planted near Páramo del Sil bring high caloric fruit that supports bears through winter months (FOP).
The Trees with a Future project is co-funded by the European Union’s LIFE program and involves collaboration with the Ministry of Ecological Transition, the Biodiversity Foundation, FPNCL, and Tierra Pura Foundation. Forest teams, guided by FOP, perform agricultural activities with local residents, supporting local employment and community involvement (LIFE Bears program).
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The initiative reframes the region as a model for combining habitat restoration with sustainable rural livelihoods, a message that resonates with conservation efforts in North American contexts. The lessons learned here can inform similar strategies in national parks and protected areas across Canada and the United States, where habitat connectivity and food resource recovery are critical for large carnivores facing climate pressures (Cross-border Conservation Reports).
Contact details of the environment department have been removed for this version.