Long-standing environmental education project

CICONIA has been involved in environmental education projects in the Extremadura region since the late 90s. The White Stork was subject of field trips, in-class lessons, exhibitios, and small theatre and film productions, with the goal of raising environmental awareness. The project was supplemented with concrete species protection measures such as removal of plastic strings from stork nests, which would pose a threat to fledglings.

Habitat restoration

An extensive habitat restoration project was launched in 2006 in collaboration with the Fundatión Global Nature. Goals of this project were: 

• Establishing a biological conservation area network on a contractual basis with local finca-owners
• Purchase of particularly valuable land plots
• Creating new foraging habitat for White Storks in the form of wetlands
• Restoring and protecting the shore vegetation along ponds of the manor of Fundación El Baldió
• Errecting nesting platforms for White and Black Storks
• Increasing biodiversity and introducing a prey base for raptors and Iberian Lynx through installation of rabbit burrows.
• Public relations work and continued environmental education