The conservation of the red kite from local to global scale. The Eurokite LIFE project

When addressing the conservation of wild birds like the red kite, we often encounter the added difficulty of how much they move about, especially when migrating. There are species that nest in northern Europe and winter in the Mediterranean area and those that nest near us and winter at different latitudes in Africa. How do we address conservation actions in a place when there may be threats, even undetected ones, hundreds or thousands of kilometres from our area of action?

The challenge is not easy and it is very rarely possible to bring together entities, administrations and organisations dedicated to the conservation of species in such extensive areas.

But there is currently a project underway that aims to act throughout the global distribution area of a species: The Eurokite LIFE project, and the target species, the red kite (Milvus milvus).

The red kite is a medium-sized bird of prey and it is the only bird of prey almost endemic to Europe today (populations in North African are almost extinct).

It is a migratory species, and the populations in central Europe move south during the winter, mainly to Spain, Portugal and Italy.

Its main threats are of anthropogenic origin: These include poisoning, shooting, collisions with energy infrastructures and being run over. Although as it is a migratory species, climate change may well be affecting it.

So what can we do about the fact that in some places they are taking measures to conserve the species, whilst in others, hundreds of kilometres away, these efforts are minimised because the kites protected in one place die when they come here.

In this regard, the Eurokite LIFE project has managed to bring together 19 entities from a number of European countries (NGOs, government agencies, electricity companies, etc.) that are developing conservation actions for the red kite in 21 countries throughout the continent, and whose mission is to identify threats using GPS devices on more than 600 red kites distributed in a number of European countries with the aim of correcting or minimising mortality in this species.

Through this network of entities, as well as other collaborators that have joined since the beginning of the project, and by tagging red kites with GPS devices, we are beginning to detect the causes of mortality and threats to the red kite on a local and global scale.

But for example, what happens when, using a GPS, a red kite from Germany is found dead in Spain?

Here the collaboration between entities is essential and needs to quickly initiate a process to determine the cause of mortality: Communication with the partner closest to the place of death so they can go there, notification to the environmental and police authorities, investigation in the field by the SEPRONA of the Civil Guard or regional Environmental Agents, laboratory analysis, notifications to biodiversity conservation services and/or the courts, etc.

In some cases the identification and solution of the threat can be fairly, as in the case of electrocutions in some places (but not in all), but in cases of poisoning or shootings the investigation and even imputation of a person responsible is a complicated process (these activities are considered a crime in the Spanish criminal code).

This is why close, swift rapid collaboration between the different entities involved is essential, because in some cases, like that of the red kites, they can be hundreds or thousands of kilometres away each other.

And it is not just about immediate action. The exchange of information and training in techniques for detecting and investigating wildlife crime is essential, and in this case, in Spain we have the best investigators for crimes against wildlife in Europe and probably worldwide. Proof of this is the large number cases of people accused and convicted of this type of crime in Spain, unlike in the other countries in Europe. This is why it is equally important for there to be an exchange of information and training between these investigators, biodiversity technicians and even environmental judges and prosecutors from other European countries.