Thanks to the LIFE+ Cantabrian Capercaillie programme, coordinated by the Biodiversity Foundation of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and the Environment, 3 female specimens of this subspecies have been released in the Picos de Europa Regional Park in Castilla y León and SPA Picos de Europa in Castilla y León, which were born at the end of June and beginning of July in the breeding centre of Sobrescobio (Principality of Asturias) of Asturias).
After 12 weeks, they were transferred to the pre-release park, installed in an optimal area for their release and whose function has been to acclimatize the capercaillie to the place, develop their sense of orientation in that territory, contribute to the cohesion of the group, learn to feed and hide from possible predators.
The capercaillie have remained in the pre-release park for 8 days, after which, and after checking the correct acclimatization of the specimens, the gates of the park have been opened so that the specimens can leave it on their own initiative and in a calm and progressive way. All capture, transfer and release work has been carried out with the utmost caution, following the protocols established for these actions, generating the least possible stress to the specimens. After capture at the breeding centre, the specimens have been tagged with radio transmitters, in order to identify them, monitor them and assess the success of the reinforcement programme.
The selection of the release area has been carried out following criteria such as the quality of the habitat, the possibility of dispersal of the specimens, the presence of the subspecies in the area and the degree of protection of the territory.
A COMPLEX AGEING PROCESS
The main difficulty of the reinforcement program is the high mortality rate of young specimens of this species, to which, in the case of those released, a lower acclimatization capacity could be added. For this reason, the breeding process of the 3 specimens has been complex and very careful, trying to get individuals capable of adapting to life in freedom. In this sense, the handling and discomfort that could be caused to the birds during the breeding period has been reduced as much as possible, reducing eye contact with the keepers as much as possible to avoid atypical behaviour in front of people. In addition, they have been provided with an adequate natural diet, to facilitate adaptation to wild foods and management techniques have been developed to enhance favorable behaviors of identification and flight from predators.
Likewise, in order to promote the maximum survival of female capercaillie in the release area and to enable the success of the population reinforcement, preparatory actions have also been undertaken in the habitat such as improvements in the structure of the mass or the signalling of livestock enclosures, and the control of pressure from predators and competitors. In all the work, we have had the support and collaboration of the local population, owner of the mountain where the actions are carried out.
CAPTIVE BREEDING PROGRAMS
The captive breeding and strengthening programmes for the Cantabrian capercaillie are pilot actions in the conservation of this subspecies, and are based on previous experiences carried out in other European countries with other subspecies of capercaillie or other galliformes. The success of captive breeding depends on numerous factors such as the results of the capture, marking and removal of clutch programmes, the productivity of the breeding females in the breeding centre, as well as the difficulties inherent in the captive breeding process.
Despite the complexity of the breeding programme, the LIFE+ Cantabrian Capercaillie project is committed to strengthening populations from captive specimens to try to help stop the decline of this endangered subspecies and as a complementary measure to the attacks on the ground. Specifically, in the Cantabrian Mountains, the low density of the areas that currently maintain capercaillie specimens, and their low productivity, make it extremely difficult for isolated populations to recover from natural source nuclei. The project aims to strengthen these nuclei and rescue part of the genetic variability they represent, without reducing parallel efforts for the conservation of wild populations and their habitat.
In this sense, the LIFE+ Cantabrian Capercaillie follows the strategic lines promoted by the Action Plan for the Conservation of Tetraonids prepared by the IUCN and included in the Strategy for the Conservation of the Cantabrian Capercaillie of Spain.
The actions carried out have also followed the guidelines set out in the technical document “Programme for the reinforcement of the Cantabrian capercaillie population”.
LIFE+ CAPERCAILLIE PROJECT
The LIFE+ 09 NAT/ES/000513 project “Programme of urgent actions for the conservation of the capercaillie (Tetrao urogallus cantabricus) and its habitat in the Cantabrian Mountains” has as its main objective to stop the decline of this subspecies exclusive to the Northwest of the Iberian Peninsula and promote its recovery.
The actions of the project aim to improve their conservation status and that of their habitat, promote environmental education and encourage awareness and participation in society.
The area of action includes 16 SPAs of the Natura 2000 Network in the Cantabrian Mountains and is developed between October 2010 and December 2016.
The project, coordinated by the Biodiversity Foundation of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and the Environment, is 50% co-financed through the LIFE+ programme, the European Union’s financial instrument for the environment, and has as partners the Autonomous Communities of Cantabria, the Principality of Asturias and Castilla y León, the latter through the Natural Heritage Foundation of Castilla y León; the Interregional Consortium for the Coordinated Management of the Picos de Europa National Park; Tragsa and Tragsatec; SEO/BirdLife and with funding from the Autonomous National Parks Agency and the Iberdrola Foundation.
