The Management Committee of the LIFE+ Desmania project, coordinated by the Biodiversity Foundation of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and the Environment, met today in Plasencia with the aim of addressing issues related to the status and development of this project.
 
Among the objectives of this meeting was to validate the documents of the preparatory actions, adopt a common methodological approach, establish a schedule of conservation actions for the second half of the year and review the communication plan.
 
LIFE+ Desmania aims to conserve the Iberian desman (Galemys pyrenaicus), a small aquatic mammal that inhabits the vicinity of rivers, streams and lakes in mountainous areas and is distributed from the French side of the Pyrenees to Portugal, although it is in Spain where most of its population is found.
 
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 project, 50% co-financed by the European Commission within the framework of the LIFE+ Call, will be developed between 2012 and 2016 in Natura 2000 Network areas of the provinces of León, Zamora, Salamanca, Ávila, Palencia and Cáceres. It is coordinated by the Biodiversity Foundation and has among its partners the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and the Environment, the Regional Government of Castilla y León, the Regional Government of Extremadura, the Cesefor Foundation, the Natural Heritage Foundation of Castilla y León, SOMACYL and Tragsatec. In addition, the City Council of Valencia de Don Juan and the Association of Municipalities of the South of León participate as co-financing entities. The project also has the support of the Miño-Sil, Tagus and Duero Hydrographic Confederations, research centres and fishermen’s associations.