- Fundación Cepsa highlights, on International Bird Day, the work carried out at the Madrevieja Environmental Station help owls recover in southern Spain
- The initiative is a joint project between the Junta de Andalusia (regional government of Andalusia) and the European Union
The project to recover the owl in southern Spain at the Madrevieja Environmental Station, owned by Fundación Cepsa and managed by Ornitour, has meant the release of 62 specimens over four years with their corresponding bands.
For World Bird Day, Fundación Cepsa has taken stock of this initiative, carried out with Ornitour, to protect and enrich the biodiversity of the Campo de Gibraltar and the south of the peninsula, which has had outstanding results and has opened a line of hopeful actions to increase the population of owls, a bird whose presence in Spain has been in decline in recent years.
The project to recover the Tyto alba owl in southern Spain began in 2019 with the acquisition of a breeding pair on loan from the Junta de Andalusia, which now has two pairs. This initiative is also carried out with the European Union bird ringing service, Euring, an organization that promotes international collaboration in the study of birds, particularly in Europe and along the African-Eurasian flyway. Euring has allowed Madrevieja to use red rings with white numbers, a color combination not seen anywhere else in Europe, meaning that the birds ringed at this site will be easy to identify across the continent.
Estrella Blanco, head of Fundación Cepsa in Campo de Gibraltar, highlighted "the commitment of Fundación Cepsa and Ornitour, not only to recover and enhance the wetlands in the Madrevieja Environmental Station, but to implement projects to increase the recovery of biodiversity with endangered species, which are bearing very good fruit, demonstrating that the coexistence between nature and industry is possible."
The Madrevieja Environmental Station is a research center and nature reserve owned by Fundación Cepsa, which has worked to restore the wetland since 2009. Since its inauguration in 2014, Ornitour has been working not only to preserve the area, but also to recover species and the passage of birds in this corner of Campo de Gibraltar, which is open to the public to enjoy and learn from.
Fundación Cepsa is also now working on hosting the tenth anniversary of the Madrevieja Environmental Station opening its doors, which will be celebrated in 2024, highlighting the commitment of Cepsa and its Foundation to the environment and sustainability and the importance of working in partnership to protect natural spaces and biodiversity.
