Spain is the only country that is home to breeding colonies of the species, a bird classified as “endangered” globally. The Spanish proposal has had the support of Birdlife International.

The Ministry of the Environment, Rural and Marine Affairs has proposed to the Advisory Committee of the Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels (ACAP) the incorporation of the Balearic shearwater (“Puffinus mauretanicus”) in the list of species protected by this agreement, derived from the Bonn Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS), which was ratified by Spain in August 2003.

The Spanish proposal has had the support of Birdlife International, which has accompanied it with the International Action Plan for the Balearic shearwater, prepared by the Spanish Ornithological Society (SEO/Birdlife), and with the agreement of France, a country that is part of the species’ distribution area.

The next step in the process will require submission and approval at the next Meeting of the Parties in spring 2012.