SPEA, the Portuguese Society for the Study of Birds has launched a fundraising campaign to create a national network of sanctuaries to reverse the ‘worrying decline’ of species. The aim, explains SPEA in a statement, is to create safe havens where experts, together with landowners, will define measures to favour local birdlife and biodiversity. “In a context of the decline of a large number of species, including many considered common, it is essential to involve people directly in nature conservation, and birds in particular,” emphasised SPEA’s executive director, Rui Borralho. In the sanctuaries, specialists will be able to help develop measures such as creating ponds and water points, replacing invasive plants with native species, implementing crop plots for wildlife and installing nesting boxes.
