Objective
The project's actions will be implemented in the steppe areas located within the Extremadura SPA network and they mainly consist of habitat improvement for the three species. For the great bustard and the little bustard, measures will be undertaken to promote crop farming and livestock raising compatible with the requirements of the birds: sowing legumes and other rotation crops of strategic importance in order to promote dispersal of the two birds over a wider area; delaying harvesting until the chicks are born and even abandoning the cultivation of certain areas altogether in order to prevent catastrophic breeding failures. In order to diminish the birds' impact on crops, legume seeds will be shared by farmers. Concerning the lesser kestrel, the measures focus on the restoration of buildings which contain nesting colonies, installing artificial nests wherever possible. Information activities are directed at farmers and the local community in general.
The little bustard, great bustard and lesser kestrel are three species on Annex I of the Birds Directive with significant populations in Extremadura. Their habitats are the steppe areas, i.e. open treeless landscapes used as extensive pasture or for the cultivation of cereals. A considerable proportion of the network of Special Protection Areas for Birds in Extremadura consists of this type of habitat, notably the Llanos de Cáceres, Cornalvo nature park and the Embalse de Orellana y Sierra de Pela.
The three bird species are considered to be under worldwide threat and pose a major conservation challenge, mainly related to habitat destruction and degradation. As far as the two species nesting on the ground, the great bustard and the little bustard, are concerned, the main threat to their conservation is the intensive mechanisation of farming and the increase in cattle stocking density; other problems come on top of these fundamental threats, such as the increasing numbers of predators, the damages the birds cause to crops and their collisions with electric power lines and barbed-wire fences. The lesser kestrel, which nests in old buildings, is mainly threatened by the deterioration of these nesting sites in the rural areas and by competition with other species for occupation of the available nesting holes.
Topic(s)
Data not availableCall for proposal
Data not availableFunding Scheme
CSC - Cost-sharing contractsCoordinator
06800 Merida
Spain