Carlos Ciudad

Grupo Tragsatec · Quality Management, Environmental Assessment and Biodiversity

Despite its relevance for the persistence of populations, the ecological mechanisms underlying habitat use decisions of juvenile birds are poorly understood. We examined postfledging habitat selection of radio-tracked juvenile middle spotted woodpeckers Dendrocopos medius at multiple hierarchically-nested spatial scales in NW Spain. At the landscap...

The high extinction risk of small populations is commonly explained by reductions in fecundity and breeder survival associated with demographic and environmental stochasticity. However, ecological theory suggests that population extinctions may also arise from reductions in the number of floaters able to replace the lost breeders. This can be parti...

Connectivity assessments and corridor delineation are key contributions to landscape management and biodiversity conservation. We examined the influence of three potentially crucial factors on the results of connectivity analyses, using the two subpopulations of the endangered brown bear in the Cantabrian Range (NW Spain) as a case study. First, we...

Context Natal dispersal critically influences eco-evolutionary dynamics and the persistence of spatially structured populations. As both short- and long-distance movements contribute to population persistence in fragmented landscapes, understanding dispersal requires assessing phenotypic and environmental effects on a wide range of distances. Obje...

Chemical pollution is still an underestimated threat to surface waters from natural areas. This study has analysed the presence and distribution of 59 organic micropollutants (OMPs) including pharmaceuticals, lifestyle compounds, pesticides, organophosphate esters (OPEs), benzophenone and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) in 411 water samples from...

Soils act as sinks for many organic contaminants, posing a threat to biodiversity and essential ecosystem services. In this study, we assessed the contamination status of soils in 140 Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBAs) in Spain. Fifty-two organic contaminants including organochlorine pesticides (OCPs), organophosphorus pesticides (OPPs),...

The autonomous community of Aragon (NE Spain) is a key region for the conservation of the rarest woodpecker species inhabiting the Iberian Peninsula. However, knowledge about their current distribution and population status is relatively limited because a systematic monitoring approach across all of Aragon has never been undertaken. To address this...

En este informe se presenta una selección priorizada de áreas degradadas de España con potencial y valor ambiental y con posibilidades de ser rehabilitadas. La importancia actual que está cobrando la restauración, dentro de las políticas tanto europeas como nacionales, hace pensar en que sea una herramienta crucial para el mantenimiento del estado...

El objetivo general de este trabajo es mejorar el conocimiento sobre el abandono de residuos en el medio terrestre para entender mejor su procedencia, su persistencia en el medio natural y sus potenciales impactos en los ecosistemas. Para ello, se ha realizado un muestreo en espacios naturales que cubren la mayor parte del territorio español (una...

Principales resultados obtenidos en el programa de seguimiento del galápago europeo (Emys orbicularis) y del galápago leproso (Mauremys leprosa) en Guara y en el resto de Aragón. Trabajo realizado durante el año 2023 por los Agentes para la Protección de la Naturaleza (APN) del Gobierno de Aragón, con la colaboración y coordinación del equipo de Tr...

Principales resultados obtenidos en el programa de seguimiento del pico dorsiblanco (Dendrocopos leucotos lilfordi), del picamaderos negro (Dryocopus martius) y del pico mediano (Dendrocoptes medius) en Guara y en el resto de Aragón. Trabajo realizado durante el año 2023 por los Agentes para la Protección de la Naturaleza (APN) del Gobierno de Arag...

Principales resultados obtenidos en el programa de seguimiento del aguilucho cenizo (Circus pygargus), del aguilucho pálido (Circus cyaneus) y del aguilucho lagunero occidental (Circus aeruginosus) en Aragón. Trabajo realizado durante el año 2023 por los Agentes para la Protección de la Naturaleza (APN) del Gobierno de Aragón, con la colaboración y...

Principales resultados obtenidos en el programa de seguimiento del gran capricornio (Cerambyx cerdo), del escarabajo ermitaño (Osmoderma eremita), del ciervo volante (Lucanus cervus) y de la rosalia (Rosalia alpina) en Guara y en el resto de Aragón. Trabajo realizado durante el año 2023 por los Agentes para la Protección de la Naturaleza (APN) del...

Se analiza el grado de relación entre el parque español de infraestructuras hidráulicas, en concreto de los embalses más importantes, y la conservación y gestión de los espacios protegidos de la Red Natura 2000. Se examinan los efectos negativos que se pueden producir debido al aprovechamiento del recurso hídrico que tiene lugar en estos grandes em...

La contaminación de los ecosistemas es una de las principales amenazas para la biodiversidad a nivel global, teniendo además grandes implicaciones (directas e indirectas) en el bienestar y en la salud humana. Por estos motivos, desde hace décadas, se han realizado numerosos estudios para evaluar el efecto de determinados contaminantes en el medio a...

Se analiza el grado de relación entre el parque español de infraestructuras hidráulicas, en concreto de los embalses más importantes, y la conservación y gestión de los espacios protegidos de la Red Natura 2000. A pesar de la gran modificación del ecosistema fluvial que conlleva la construcción de un gran embalse, muchas de estas infraestructuras a...

La contaminación del agua sigue siendo una amenaza subestimada para las aguas superficiales naturales. Este trabajo tiene como objetivo cuantificar por primera vez el impacto de los contaminantes orgánicos en Áreas Importantes para la Conservación de las Aves y la Biodiversidad (IBA) en España e identificar sus fuentes potenciales de contaminación....

The presence of organic micropollutants (OMP) in surface water has a negative impact on living organisms and may directly lead to habitat degradation and loss of ecosystem services. For this reason, water pollution is an important risk to consider for the management of key areas for biodiversity. This work has analysed the presence and distribution...

In this study we have established a monitoring scheme to determine the presence and distribution of widely used pharmaceuticals, pesticides, organophosphate esters (OPEs) and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in water bodies from Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBAs) from Spain. The monitoring scheme included the georeferenced sampling of roc...

https://atlasaves.seo.org/ave/pico-mediano/

https://atlasaves.seo.org/ave/picamaderos-negro/

El presente informe analiza el grado de relación entre los embalses más importantes de España y la conservación de los espacios protegidos de la Red Natura 2000. Tras analizar 1.092 embalses (en España existen aproximadamente 1.200 grandes embalses), concluimos que el 53% de los mismos está directamente relacionado con la Red Natura 2000, e incluso...

Chemical pollution is still an underestimated threat to surface waters from natural areas. This work has analysed the presence and distribution of 59 organic micropollutants (OMPs) including pharmaceuticals, lifestyle compounds, pesticides, organophosphate esters (OPEs), and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) in 411 water samples from 140 Important...

JUSTIFICACIÓN CATEGORÍA Y CRITERIOS: Puesto que no se han desarrollado censos específicos, estandarizados y periódicos del pico mediano a nivel estatal, no se cuenta con información básica sobre distribución o abundancia de la especie que permita evaluar adecuadamente su estado de conservación. Los estudios realizados hasta el momento, con diferent...

Este análisis, el primero de sus características realizado en España, supone un primer paso para dimensionar el alcance de la contaminación difusa en el medio natural, tanto la presente como la pasada, y su impacto sobre el conjunto de la biodiversidad. El estudio se enmarca dentro del Proyecto LIBERA que, desde 2017, desarrolla SEO/BirdLife en a...

This document, which has been published within the framework of the POCTEFA Habios project, aims to be a reference manual helping practitioners, technicians and planners to conciliate forest activities and the conservation of the Middle Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocoptes medius). This bird is specialized in mature deciduous and marcescent forests tha...

During 2019 and 2020 a sampling campaign to identify microplastics was carried out in 157 streams and rivers in mainland Spain. The sampling was done by applying a sampling methodology developed by HyT, (Hombre y Territorio Association) within the framework of the LIBERA Project, and was concomitant with a pollutant monitoring in IBA (Important Bir...

Ecological theory and recent empirical studies show that the persistence of spatially structured populations – those composed of spatially separated local populations connected by dispersal – may require the maintenance of pools of floaters (nonbreeding but sexually mature individuals) that rescue small local populations from extinction by replacin...

Our woodpecker study on the buffer effect of floaters by reinforcing colonisation has been published by Animal Conservation. Here the cover page and issue information

Restrictions and active measures to enhance Middle-spotted Woodpecker conservation and minimise impact from forestry activities.

Protocolo metodológico para la planificación, la toma de muestras, el análisis y la identificación de microplásticos en ríos. Desarrollado dentro del convenio de la Asociación Hombre y Territorio (HyT) con el proyecto LIBERA de SEO/BirdLife en alianza con Ecoembes.

Monitoring forest–agriculture mosaics is crucial for understanding landscape heterogeneity and managing biodiversity. Mapping these mosaics from remotely sensed imagery remains challenging, since ecological gradients from forested to agricultural areas make characterizing vegetation more difficult. The recent synthetic aperture radar (SAR) Sentinel...

Los estudios de selección de recursos aportan gran cantidad de información sobre el comportamiento de los animales y su relación con el territorio. Son capaces de identificar cómo influyen diferentes factores ecológicos (como las cubiertas y usos del suelo) sobre los animales; es decir, permiten inferir qué prefieren o qué los beneficia en mayor me...

Habitat selection models for woodland species usually consider forest attributes derived from land cover maps, such as an area covered by forests or distance to forest edge, but canopy cover is less frequently used as a predictor. We evaluated the effect of including forest canopy cover data in habitat selection models for woodland species using th...

The conservation or creation of ecological corridors is a key to support species persistence in fragmented landscapes. However, little guidance exists on where to concentrate the restoration measures to improve corridor quality and functionality. Focusing on the emblematic Iberian lynx Lynx pardinus as the target species, and using a resistance sur...

Movement ecology has shown to be a raising discipline that can provide a better understanding of multiple ecological processes, from individual foraging decisions to dispersal or migration. However, while recent technical advances have led to a plethora of migration studies, the use of detailed movements of individuals on natal dispersal – i.e., a...

Los esfuerzos de conservación sobre las poblaciones del amenazado lince ibérico (Lynx pardinus) y la reintroducción de ejemplares para expandir las poblaciones hacia sus áreas de distribución histórica hacen necesario evaluar la potencialidad del territorio para albergar poblaciones estables y para facilitar el movimiento de individuos entre ellas....

Update. A comprehensive review of the natural history of the Middle Spotted Woodpecker Dendropicos medius in Spain.

Spatial resolution of environmental data may influence the results of habitat selection models. As high-resolution data are usually expensive, an assessment of their contribution to the reliability of habitat models is of interest for both researchers and managers. We evaluated how vegetation cover datasets of different spatial resolutions influenc...

Context Multi-scale approaches to habitat modeling have been shown to provide more accurate understanding and predictions of species-habitat associations. It remains however unexplored how spatial and temporal variations in habitat use may affect multi-scale habitat modeling. Objectives We aimed at assessing how seasonal and temporal differences in...

Tras décadas de intenso declive, buena parte de los grandes carnívoros de Europa se encuentran en proceso de recuperación. En la Península Ibérica, el oso pardo y el lince ibérico han estado al borde de la extinción, debido principalmente a la persecución humana y a la pérdida y fragmentación de su hábitat. En los últimos años, las acciones de cons...

Izki Natural Park is a Special Protection Area and Site of Community Importance designated by the EU. In 2010, the Provincial Council of Álava and Hazi Foundation initiated LIFE+ Pro-Izki, a project embed within the EU-LIFE programme that aims the restoration and preservation of the Pyrenean oak (Quercus pyrenaica) forest and their associated habit...

Cavity shortage limits secondary cavity-nesting birds (SCN) assemblages in intensively-managed forests with few cavities, but whether cavity availability limits SCN in cavity-rich forests remains unclear. To address this issue, we used a replicated before-after-control-impact design in which the availability of cavities was experimentally reduced a...

Despite extensive research on the effects of habitat fragmentation, the ecological mechanisms underlying colonization and extinction processes are poorly known, but knowledge of these mechanisms is essential to understanding the distribution and persistence of populations in fragmented habitats. We examined these mechanisms through multiseason occu...

Secondary cavity-nesting birds (SCN), which cannot create their own breeding cavities, are expected to be influenced by habitat alteration caused by forest management practices, but the mechanisms underlying the distribution pattern of SCN subjected to different management systems are poorly known. To improve our knowledge on these mechanisms, we e...

Twelve polymorphic microsatellite loci were developed for Dendrocopos medius. Polymorphism was assessed for 27 individuals from the southwesternmost population of this woodpecker species. The number of alleles per locus ranged from three to seven, with observed heterozygosity values from 0.444 to 0.852. Genotypic frequencies conformed to Hardy-Wein...

We examined the demographic response of Middle Spotted Woodpeckers (Dendrocopos medius) to habitat fragmentation in an 880-km(2) study area in the Cantabrian Mountains (northwest Spain), 2000-2005. We used a set of reproductive parameters to examine 26-72 nests in 10-14 habitat patches. Fifty-nine of 72 nests (81.9%) were successful (i.e., at least...

Despite its relevance for the dynamics of populations, the ecological mechanisms underlying juvenile and adult survival are poorly known in most bird species. This study focuses on the effect of habitat fragmentation on early post-fledging, first-year and adult survival of the middle spotted woodpecker Dendrocopus medius by combining data of radio-...

Anthropogenic changes in forest structure threats the persistence of numerous organisms. In Spain, Pyrenean oak (Quercus pyrenaica) forests are mainly subjected to three sylvopastoral management systems which determine variations in the forest structure: (i) "young forests" subjected to frequent disturbance by fires and clear-cuttings; (ii) "Pyrene...

In Pyrenean oak (Quercus pyrenaica) forests of the Cantabrian Mountains (NW Spain, between León and Palencia provinces), the effects of three sylvopastoral management systems on habitat use and reproduction of the middle spotted woodpecker (Dendrocopos medius) were examined