Vultures and Wild Horses Are Coming Back to These Highlands

Through a rewilding project, wildlife such as vultures, lynx, and wild horses are set to make a comeback in Spain’s Iberian highlands, a weakly populated area suitable for the reintroduction of valuable members of biodiversity.

“There are less than around two people per square kilometer, which makes it very special because you can see nature in a different way,” explains Pablo Schapira, team leader at Rewilding Spain, one of the organizations leading the project. “It’s very rare to find these kinds of places in Europe.”

The Iberian Highlands Rewilding Landscape project spans over 850,000 hectares. It is the 10^th undertaken by Rewilding Europe, and the first in Spain, specifically in the southern part of the Iberian Chain that stretches 500 km. Up to 15 black vultures – also known as a monk or cinereous vultures – will be reintroduced every year in Alto Tajo. As for bearded vultures – or bone-breakers – they are encouraged to naturally recolonize. To that effect, their habitats are being improved. Once the world’s most endangered cat with fewer than 100 individuals 20 years ago, there are more than 1,000 Iberian lynx across Spain and Portugal following successful EU projects. Three or four specimens will be released in the area within two years. The city of Mazarete and its 66 inhabitants welcomed 11 semi-wild horses last summer, and more will be released before the end of the year.