"Extinct" bird returns to Mar Menor

Written by Phillip Bruce

Friday, 02 May 2008

The canestera A species of rare bird thought to have been extinct has returned to the Mar Menor in Murcia, Europe's largest inland sea. The canestera bird (Glareola pratincola) is a small bird which flourishes in wetlands. The Mar Menor used to have plenty of these, particularly around the salt pans that have operated for a thousand years or more. However, development has taken its toll and as the builders got to work so the birds became scarcer and scarcer. In the 1980s the last colonies disappeared, it was thought forever. However, this year it is thought about 30 pairs are now nesting in a special area at El Carmoli. Ecologists were surprised some time back to find that a few of the birds had returned and that they could obviously live with managed agricultural practices. So, special arrangements were made with local farmers, including payments, and the collaboration between the ecologists and the cultivators has meant that the colony has grown to its current size. The fact that there are now about 30 pairs means, say experts, that the colony has become stable. The species has come back from the brink in the Mar Menor. The canestera spends its winters in Africa and now it has resumed its regular migration northwards to inland sea. That is not the only good news on the bird front, for while counting and surveying the canestras, experts also were surprised to find the body of a calamón (Porphyrio porphyrio). Although the bird was dead, the specialists were encouraged to see that the species is obviously present again in the Mar Menor. This is another type of bird that was previously thought to be extinct in the area. It is thought that there are only about 10 pairs in the whole of the region of Murcia. The fact that it has been found in the Mar Menor is said to be very encouraging. Ecologists and activists have been fighting hard in recent years to try and reduce the toll that massive over development has taken on the beautiful inland sea. They have had some successes, and the current problems in the construction centre and economic difficulties look like being very good news for wildlife. from: http://www.roundtownnews.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=14708&Itemid=31