The final results of the European project LIFE+ Cantabrian Capercaillie, coordinated by the Biodiversity Foundation of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Food and the Environment, were presented today in Ponga (Asturias) at a meeting in which the measures carried out in the last six years to halt the decline of this endemic subspecies of the Cantabrian Mountains in danger of extinction were announced.  

The LIFE+ Cantabrian Capercaillie project has been a pioneer in combining the efforts of the state administration, the autonomous communities of Cantabria, the Principality of Asturias and Castilla y León, civil society and the business sector in the conservation of this endemic subspecies of the Cantabrian Mountains.

Partners and co-financiers, including the Autonomous National Parks Agency and the Iberdrola Spain Foundation, participated in the presentation of results, as well as entities that worked to improve the conservation status of the species and its habitat, environmental education and participation in society. 

During the day, the partners presented the main measures that have been carried out since the beginning of the project in 2010. In forest management, silvicultural treatments have been carried out on more than 500 hectares to promote the habitat of the capercaillie.

One of the critical factors considered in the planning of habitat improvement work has been the great sensitivity of capercaillie to human disturbance. The project has made it possible to know how it is responding to the proposed actions. After the work carried out in Alto Sil and Omaná, hatched eggs and specimens have been found and no disturbances have been detected for the species. The capercaillie have remained in the places where there were specimens present and have occupied some nearby treated areas.

With the aim of reducing threats to the capercaillie, 60 km of dangerous fencing have been removed or signposted and action has been taken to eliminate the risk of electrocution and reduce the acoustic impact of the electrical substation located in Puerto de Panderruedas (León).

The actions of the captive breeding programme as a complementary measure to habitat management. The Sobrescobio centre, which houses 22 specimens , has a genetic and captive stock of the species and interesting data on its behavior and ecology. The breeding program also has a captive specimen in the wildlife recovery center of Cantabria.

Among the milestones of this last year, the birth of two chicks from the partial removal of a clutch from the wild has been highlighted. This is the first time that a clutch has been extracted from the environment within the framework of the LIFE+ Cantabrian Capercaillie, within the program of capture, marking and removal of clutches. In addition, capercaillie have been reintroduced into the wild for the first time under LIFE+.

In addition, within the framework of LIFE+ Cantabrian Capercaillie, 19 land stewardship projects have been developed, a tool that has made it possible to establish 29 voluntary agreements between owners, non-profit entities and other public and private agents to improve the conservation of the capercaillie and its habitat. 

Among the dissemination and environmental education actions, the volunteer program has been carried out in which 72 volunteers have been involved in the improvement of the habitat of the capercaillie and school workshops have been organizedin which more than 2,000 students have participated.