The Assesor for Ecological Transition, fight against the climate change and territorial planning of the Government of the Canary Islands, José Antonio Valbuena, visited on 31 August 2021 the facilities of the Estación Biológica de La Oliva dedicated to the LIFE Egyptian Vulture project.
During the visit, the Assesor thanked the professionals involved in this project for their work, in particular the Biodiversity Service of the regional government, which is committed to ensuring the survival of the Egyptian Vulture (guirre canario), a species listed as “endangered” on the Spanish List of Threatened Species and the Canarian List of Protected Species.
By 2021, it is expected that there will be more than 400 vulture specimens between Fuerteventura and Lanzarote, much more than the 150 recorded in 1998. In addition, a total of 90 breeding territories and the birth of 49 chicks are estimated, which is an absolute record.
The Assesor was accompanied on his visit by the President of the Cabildo de Fuerteventura, Sergio Lloret, the Island’s Councillor for Environmental Sustainability, Lola García, and the Mayor of La Oliva, Pilar González.
Lloret point out that “we are working with the government and the municipalities to create a greater social awareness of the need to conserve threatened species, such as the Egyptian vulture in this case”. For his part, García point out that ‘as institutions, we must combat all risk factors and, among them, the illegal use of poison, one of the main threats to this species’. In this regard, a demonstration of dog training by the Anti-poison Dog Unit, which is part of the LIFE Egyptian vulture project, took place during the visit.
Finally, the mayor of La Oliva, Pilar González, showed her appreciation for the work carried out by the people working in the Biological Centre of La Oliva “who contribute to making the municipality of La Oliva a reference in the protection and conservation of the avifauna of the island of Fuerteventura, especially for such a sensitive species as the Egyptian vulture, which represents an attraction for tourism related to birdwatching and nature”.
