Current conservation issues
Nature Trail by Malcolm Palmer
Global warming, excessive urbanization, and unsympathetic agriculture – these are all issues with which we are all too familiar.
It is, however, necessary to look more closely at certain aspects of all these points.
‘Steppe birds’ like the sandgrouse species and the bustards, as well as the rarer species of larks, depend heavily on ‘set-aside’ or fallow land – in other words, uncultivated tracts – the more extensive the better, and when these are eaten up by agriculture, the birds will surely disappear.
Wind-farms are also a major problem, and one is often left wondering if the energy they produce justifies the danger they pose to soaring birds.
I have no problem with them in areas where there are few of these birds, but the mere sight of the plethora of turbines set to overlook the Straits of Gibraltar, slap-bang on the migration-route of millions of soaring raptors and storks gives much cause for concern. Surely in a sun-kissed country like Spain, solar panels are much more efficient and certainly less harmful.
Some very rare species have more specific problems than others. The Iberian Lynx (the world’s rarest feline) has to run the gauntlet of road crossings, which have accounted for far too many of their number in recent years. All the signs, and limits seem to have little effect as road deaths continue to account for substantial numbers.
Sadly, in the twenty-first century, furtive hunting seems still to be a problem, and is known to have brought about the demise of no less than four of these precious cats in the last year.
Should you have anything you wish to report, or any queries, I can be found at malcaves@yahoo.es