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National biodiversity prize awarded to SPEA Marine IBA's project

31-01-2008

In January 2008, a project from SPEA (BirdLife Portugal) to identify marine Important Bird Areas (IBAs) unanimously won Portugal’s National BES Biodiversity award. The award was presented at the head office of the Banco Espírito Santo in Lisbon by the Minister for the Environment, Planning, and Regional Development,  Dr. Francisco Nunes Correia. The award, worth 75,000 EUR aims to support innovative research initiatives, conservation and management of biodiversity. The award winner was decided by an international jury and represents international recognition for the work of the SPEA and its partners. This project, which is supported by the European Commission’s LIFE programme, is pioneer project in Europe and forms a scientific basis for the designation of the future network of protected marine areas, including the network forms part of the EU’s Natura 2000 network.

During the past three years a team of SPEA biologists travelled more then 110,000km at sea, from the continental coasts to the limits of the marine shelf of the archipelagos of the Azores and Madeira. In total, more than 150,000 birds of 70 different species, in addition to many species of marine mammals and turtles, were recorded. Additionally, more than 300 trips of marine birds were tracked. This provided valuable information about feeding and resting areas of these birds, and their relation to environmental variables (e.g. temperature, salinity or marine currents) or human activity (such as fishing and maritime traffic).

The Marine IBA Project started in 2004, with support from the EU’s LIFE programme and has a duration of four years.

"This award signifies the recognition of an excellent team of professionals of the SPEA and of the partners of the project who have spent many hours at sea, on islands and in offices studying one of Portugal's greatest treasures, the marine birds" —Iván Ramírez, Coordinator of the Marine IBA project, SPEA

SPEA coordinates this project, alongside a number of academic institutions. SPEA also collaborates closely with the Portuguese Marine Hydrographic Institute.

As a key milestone, the first national inventory of marine will be published at the end of this year. This inventory will serve as a reference for the future extension of the IBA network into the marine environment of Portugal, and help identifying marine Natura 2000 sites as Portugal is obliged to do under EU law. The methodology developed by SPEA and BirdLife International is currently being applied in countries around the world, such as Greece, Malta, France, and even New Zealand and Argentina. 

Iván Ramírez, the coordinator of the Marine IBA project, affirmed that “the results of this project places our country at the front line of marine research. Portugal has the largest Economic Exclusion Zone of all European Union countries and many of the species of birds that occur here are threatened. This award signifies the recognition of an excellent team of professionals of the SPEA and of the partners of the project who have spent many hours at sea, on islands and in offices studying one of Portugal's greatest treasures, the marine birds”.

According to the Minister Dr. Francisco Nunes Correia, in addition to recognition for this project, this award acknowledges the work of the SPEA, one of the most relevant NGO's in Portugal.