Pascual López-López

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• Ph.D. Conservation Biology
• Professor (Associate) at University of Valencia

Wind farms are a clean and efficient source of renewable energy. However, they cause negative impacts on raptors. Here, we present a review of the existing scientific literature on the effects of wind farms on raptors' ecology with a particular interest in the potential solutions. After collecting 216 studies, we found a consensus in the literature...

Species life history and anthropogenic influence are important drivers of population performance and viability in human‐dominated ecosystems. How these factors affect habitat selection and occupancy in long‐lived species is an important topic for their conservation. Long‐term datasets are needed for establishing the underlying drivers of this proce...

In eastern Spain, Bonelli's eagle ( Aquila fasciata ) abundance has declined almost 50% in the last 25 years and, consequently, the species is listed as regionally endangered. Therefore, the aim of this study is to report the mortality causes of territorial breeding Bonelli's eagles, including the spatial and temporal patterns, and to assess the ef...

The fundamental value of universal nomenclatural systems in biology is that they enable unambiguous scientific communication. However, the stability of these systems is threatened by recent discussions asking for a fairer nomenclature, raising the possibility of bulk revision processes for "inappropriate" names. It is evident that such proposals co...

Knowledge of vertebrate territoriality and spatial use is a topic of great interest in the study of animal behaviour and conservation biology. Investigating the plasticity of territory boundaries, the shape of territories and how territories can be modified depending on their owners is important to deepen our knowledge of the behaviour of territori...

Human-induced direct mortality affects huge numbers of birds each year, threatening hundreds of species worldwide. Tracking technologies can be an important tool to investigate temporal and spatial patterns of bird mortality as well as their drivers. We compiled 1704 mortality records from tracking studies across the African-Eurasian flyway for 45...

Adjustment of reproductive timing within the annual cycle is a crucial issue for both offspring and parents’ survival, and breeding success. Early laying date is closely related to successful breeding outcome and better survival. Obtaining long datasets on threatened long-lived species’ breeding performance can contribute to their conservation. Usi...

Simple Summary This study focuses on New World Vultures, a group of seven scavenger bird species with ecological significance. Despite their importance, there is limited knowledge about their evolutionary history and conservation needs. Recent advances in understanding their evolutionary relationships have paved the way for addressing these gaps us...

The conservation of endangered species is a crucial topic in conservation biology due to the important ecological roles these species play in their respective ecosystems. Top predators are particularly vulnerable to the variation in environmental conditions. The Bonelli’s Eagle (Aquila fasciata) is a long-lived bird of prey that fulfills its role a...

The conservation and management of mobile species, populations and dynamic habitats, presents significant challenges since such species face diverse threats during various stages of their life cycle. Protected areas (PAs) are essential tools in conservation efforts, aiming to preserve native species and their habitats. However, larger mobile animal...

Reintroduction projects are gaining popularity; however, their relatively elevated cost and chance of failure make them debatable, hence assessing their effectiveness is essential. Within the early stages of raptors, the post-fledging dependency period (PFDP) is the one in which individuals must face dangers without having completely developed thei...

Simple Summary This study explores the use of biometric analysis to identify the sex of Bonelli’s eagles, a bird species with reverse sexual dimorphism where females are usually larger than males. By using linear discriminant analysis of biometric variables, we were able to obtain equations that accurately distinguished between male and female eagl...

Video surveillance cameras installed on birds’ nests are a cost-effective tool to study many aspects of ecology and behaviour that would otherwise be practically impossible to obtain. However, although most studies report neutral effects of cameras on birds, very few studies analyse in detail the potential negative effects of their use, particularl...

High-resolution GPS/GSM dataloggers provide spatial information of the highest quality, which outperform previous tracking methods, such as Argos telemetry or conventional VHF ground-tracking. As a result, this has improved our knowledge of home-range behavior and spatial ecology of many species, including large raptors. In this paper, we use high-...

High-resolution GPS/GSM dataloggers provide spatial information of the highest quality, which outperform previous tracking methods, such as Argos telemetry or conventional VHF ground-tracking. As a result, this has improved our knowledge of home-range behavior and spatial ecology of many species, including large raptors. In this paper, we use high-...

A male red deer was repeatedly observed scavenging in eastern Spain. This is the first time this behaviour of the red deer being recorded by means of camera traps. Scavenging behaviour of herbivores may have implications for wildlife biologists and managers.

The current advent of GPS/GSM technology, with high resolution GPS dataloggers available, provides information of the highest quality, which is certainly better than previous tracking methods such as ARGOS telemetry or conventional VHF ground-tracking. As a result, this has improved our knowledge of home-range behavior and spatial ecology of many s...

Background Little is known about the interaction between predators and wildfires, in part because the large home range and scarcity of predators make their study difficult, and their response is strongly species-specific. Aims In this paper, we study, for the first time, the effect of wildfire on the behaviour of Bonelli’s eagles (Aquila fasciata)...

Partial migration is one of the most widespread migratory strategies among taxa. Investigating the trade-off between environmental/social factors — fitness and energetic consequences — is essential to understand the coexistence of migratory and resident behaviours. Here, we compiled field monitoring data of wintering population size and telemetry d...

1. The knowledge about territoriality and space use by predators is a topic of great interest in the study of animal behavior and conservation biology. Examining the plasticity of territory limits, the topology and how territories can be modi ed depending on their owners is important to deepen into the behavior of territorial species. 2. Here, we...

In this paper, we show how many fixes are enough to define the territory of two long-lived resident raptors marked by GPS transmitters. To this end, we analyzed high-resolution GPS data from 50 territorial Bonelli's eagles (Aquila fasciata) and 9 territorial Golden eagles (Aquila chrysaetos) equipped with GPS/GSM dataloggers. Our results show that...

Carrion production is one of the most crucial yet neglected and understudied processes in food webs and ecosystems. In this study, we performed a large-scale estimation of the maximum potential production and spatial distribution of ungulate carrion biomass from five major sources in penin-sular Spain, both anthropogenic (livestock, big game huntin...

Wind turbines and power lines can cause bird mortality due to collision or electrocution. The biodiversity impacts of energy infrastructure (EI) can be minimised through effective landscape‐scale planning and mitigation. The identification of high‐vulnerability areas is urgently needed to assess potential cumulative impacts of EI while supporting t...

Islands are key areas for biodiversity; however, they are extremely sensitive to anthropic actions. This has led to local species extinctions, especially large predators such as raptors. Consequently, reintroduction and conservation projects aimed at reversing population decline of endangered species have recently gained popularity. Nevertheless, t...

Several studies have shown in different organisms how their movements can be fitted to different patterns to optimize search of food resources. According to abundance and availability of resources, different strategies will be optimal, such as Lévy and Brownian random search. We analyze the movement patterns of four species of migratory raptors wit...

Partial migration is one of the most widespread migratory strategies among taxa. Investigating the trade-off between environmental/social factors - fitness and energetic consequences – is essential to understand the coexistence of migratory and resident behaviours. Here, we compiled field monitoring data of wintering population size and telemetry d...

Capsule: Golden Eagles in Sardinia are clustered across the main mountain ranges of the island, with a preference for undisturbed and homogeneous inland habitats. Aims: To analyse habitat preferences of the Golden Eagle in Sardinia, Italy, at the landscape and home range spatial scales. Methods: Landscape scale habitat preferences were analysed usi...

Cosmetic colouration is not a common phenomenon among bird species. Adult Bearded Vultures Gypaetus barbatus typically show orange colouration in head, chest, belly and tarsus feathers that is the result of mud baths in ferruginous substrates. Several non‐mutually exclusive visual signaling hypotheses have been proposed to explain this phenomenon....

NFORME CIENTÍFICO VALORACIÓN DE LA INCLUSIÓN DEL ÁGUILA PERDICERA COMO ESPECIE EN PELIGRO DE EXTINCIÓN EN EL CATÁLOGO VALENCIANO DE ESPECIES DE FAUNA AMENAZADA ANTECEDENTES

Long‐distance migrations are among the most physically demanding feats animals perform. Understanding the potential costs and benefits of such behaviour is a fundamental question in ecology and evolution. A hypothetical cost of migration should be outweighed by higher productivity and/or higher annual survival, but few studies on migratory species...

Cutting-edge technologies are extremely useful to develop new workflows in studying ecological data, particularly to understand animal behaviour and movement trajectories at the individual level. Although parental care is a well-studied phenomenon, most studies have been focused on direct observational or video recording data, as well as experiment...

Islands are key areas for biodiversity; however, they are extremely sensitive to anthropic actions. This has led to local species extinctions, especially large predators such as raptors. Consequently, reintroduction and conservation projects aimed at reversing population decline of endangered species have recently gained popularity. Nevertheless, t...

The Tawny Owl (Strix aluco) is the most abundant nocturnal raptor in Europe. It has been thoroughly studied in various regions, but its habitat preferences in Mediterranean environments remain poorly understood. With the aim to present novel information about this aspect of the ecology of the Tawny Owl, we established 115 survey stations in the Spe...

The Tawny Owl (Strix aluco) is the most abundant nocturnal raptor in Europe. It has been thoroughly studied in various regions, but its habitat preferences in Mediterranean environments remain poorly understood. With the aim to present novel information about this aspect of the ecology of the Tawny Owl, we established 115 survey stations in the Spe...

Abstract Partial migration, whereby some individuals migrate and some do not, is relatively common and widespread among animals. Switching between migration tactics (from migratory to resident or vice versa) occurs at individual and population levels. Here, we describe for the first time the movement ecology of the largest wintering population of E...

Timing of activity can reveal an organism's efforts to optimize foraging either by minimizing energy loss through passive movement or by maximizing energetic gain through foraging. Here, we assess whether signals of either of these strategies are detectable in the timing of activity of daily, local movements by birds. We compare the similarities of...

Timing of activity can reveal an organism's efforts to optimize foraging either by minimizing energy loss through passive movement or by maximizing energetic gain through foraging. Here, we assess whether signals of either of these strategies are detectable in the timing of activity of daily, local movements by birds. We compare the similarities of...

Long-term monitoring of endangered birds is essential to estimate population trends and to identify potential causes of population decline. This is particularly important for alpine birds inhabiting mountain areas at the boundaries of their range. Here we analyse the population trend of Capercaillie in the Spanish Central Pyrenees based on annual s...

Capsule: In Egyptian Vultures Neophron percnopterus, both sexes invested similar parental effort throughout the breeding period. However, there was variation in the degree of intensity of parental care during some stages of the breeding period, suggesting that sex-role specialization exists for some activities. Aims: To quantify parental care behav...

Disentangling individual- and population-level variation in migratory movements is necessary for understanding migration at the species level. However, very few studies have analyzed these patterns across large portions of species' distributions. We compiled a large telemetry dataset on the globally endangered Egyptian Vulture Neophron percnopterus...

Context: Dietary analyses are essential to achieve a better understanding of animals’ ecology. In the case of endangered species, assessing dietary requirements is crucial to improving their management and conservation. The Bonelli’s eagle (Aquila fasciata) has experienced a severe decline throughout its breeding range in Europe and, in Italy, fewe...

Aim Animal movement is an important determinant of individual survival, population dynamics and ecosystem structure and function. Nonetheless, it is still unclear how local movements are related to resource availability and the spatial arrangement of resources. Using resident bird species and migratory bird species outside the migratory period, we...

Human-wildlife conflicts are the object of raising concern in conservation biology. People living in urban areas are rapidly increasing worldwide and consequently the temporal pattern of occupation of natural areas for recreation is changing as well, resulting in an ever-increasing concentration of people during weekends and holidays. This is parti...

Context Dietary analyses are essential to achieve a better understanding of animal ecology. In the case of endangered species, assessing dietary requirements is crucial to improve their management and conservation. The Bonelli’s eagle (Aquila fasciata) has experienced a severe decline throughout its breeding range in Europe and, in Italy, fewer tha...

Food availability is one of the most important factors limiting bird populations, being especially important in the pre-breeding and the breeding season, influencing hatching synchrony, age at first brood and growth rate of the nestlings. Human pressure is increasing in natural landscapes, which can considerably reduce the amount of resources avail...

The vulture populations in West Africa are undergoing dramatic decline over the last 30 years. Their particular ecology and sociality makes them vulnerable to various risks, including environmental changes, poisoning and bioaccumulation of toxic substances from agricultural products, pesticides, and veterinary drugs used in cattle livestock. In add...

Illegal trade in wildlife has been identified as one of the main challenges to wildlife conservation. In 2010, an illegal trade-ring trafficking in birds of prey was uncovered in Sicily (southern Italy). This illegal trade targeted the three most endangered species in Italy: Bonelli's eagle Aquila fasciata, Lanner falcon Falco biarmicus and Egyptia...

Restrictions on roaming Until the past century or so, the movement of wild animals was relatively unrestricted, and their travels contributed substantially to ecological processes. As humans have increasingly altered natural habitats, natural animal movements have been restricted. Tucker et al. examined GPS locations for more than 50 species. In ge...

Birds of prey, as top predators, play a key role in ecosystem functioning by regulating prey populations and, by means of cascade effects, promoting biodiversity. This makes them adequate sentinels of ecosystem health. Here we analyse the relationship between the occurrence of breeding short-toed snake eagle (Circaetus gallicus) and both the richne...

Conservation of migratory species faces the challenge of understanding the ecological requirements of individuals living in two geographically separated regions. In some cases, the entire population of widely distributed species congregates at relatively small wintering areas and hence, these areas become a priority for the species’ conservation. S...

Illegal trade in wildlife has been identified as one of the main challenges to wildlife conservation. In 2010, an illegal trade-ring trafficking in birds of prey was uncovered in Sicily (southern Italy). This illegal trade targeted the three most endangered species in Italy: Bonelli’s eagle (Aquila fasciata), Lanner falcon (Falco biarmicus) and Egy...

Data has been collected mainly through remote monitoring in Spain and Africa during the last decade. Most of the data comes from the Migra program of SEO/BirdLife, although some data from bird banding and tagging with conventional radio-tracking was used. For the study of spatial ecology and movements of the Booted Eagle, 21 birds were captured a...

We report the first cases of polygyny for the Bearded Vulture Gypaetus barbatus in the central Pyrenees, Spain. Although polyandry is frequent in the study area (31.8% of all reproductive units in 2016), we only observed the occurrence of three cases of polygyny over the period 1994-2017. Polygyny in Bearded Vultures is possibly a consequence of ha...

La monogamia es el sistema reproductivo más común entre las aves rapaces, aunque existen otros modos alternativos como la poliginia, la poliandria y la crianza cooperativa. La cría cooperativa ha sido documentada al menos en 22 de 76 géneros y 42 de 304 especies de aves rapaces diurnas. Sin embargo, la poliginia (i.e., cuando una hembra se aparea s...

Conocer el uso que las especies hacen del espacio es fundamental en Biología de la Conservación, especialmente cuando se trata de aves territoriales con serios problemas de conservación. Determinar con precisión el área de campeo que utilizan los distintos individuos puede facilitar el establecimiento e implementación de planes de conservación, ya...

Capsule: We report a significant reduction in population size and breeding success for the Lanner Falcon Falco biarmicus in Sicily, its biggest stronghold in Europe, since the latest coordinated survey. Aims: To provide updated information on current population size of Lanner Falcon in Sicily and to compare breeding parameters with those obtained i...

Individual behavior that minimizes predation risk is favored by natural selection. Ground-nesting birds employ different defensive behaviors as part of their antipredator strategies because they nest where a wide range of predators have access. We investigated the influence of distraction displays on breeding success in the Kentish Plover, Charadri...

Dietary habits of Egyptian vultures in Sicily have changed in the last 30 years mainly due to changes in livestock production. Here we describe and quantify Egyptian vulture’s diet in Sicily; to compare it with previous studies; to discuss changes in diet composition in relation to changes in food availability; and to suggest conservation actions a...

Knowledge of juvenile dispersal is important for understanding population dynamics and for effective conservation, particularly of geographically isolated raptor populations. Here, we report the first documented case of a long-distance movement of an Egyptian Vulture Neophron percnopterus from the French population to Sicily. This observation opens...

We are living in a technology-driven era of biological discovery. In the field of ornithology, tracking technologies have facilitated dramatic advances in the fundamental understanding of ecology and animal behavior. In this presentation we will show the preliminary results of an on-going remote tracking project of breeding Bonelli’s eagles in East...

Alarma ante la mortandad de águilas perdiceras en las balsas de riego En lo que va de siglo se sabe que más de doscientas aves se han ahogado en balsas de riego de la Comunidad Valencia na. De ellas, diez eran águilas perdiceras. Las últimas dos muertes sufridas por esta especie debido a la misma causa, acontecidas en la Sierra de Espadán (Castelló...

Technological innovations have led to exciting fast-moving developments in science. Today, we are living in a technology-driven era of biological discovery. Consequently, tracking technologies have facilitated dramatic advances in the fundamental understanding of ecology and animal behaviour. Major technological improvements, such as the developmen...

Fast-moving technological advances, such as satellite tracking technologies, are providing in-depth information of aspects of avian ecology hitherto unknown. In fact, detailed information about movement ecology and ranging behaviour of birds is important not only from the perspective of the basic ecology, but also from the conservation point of vie...

Mechanisms regulating colour polymorphism remain largely unknown and detailed investigation is required to explore the biological consequences on population dynamics. This paper presents the first study of the possible connection between colour polymorphism and productivity in a Booted Eagle (Aquila pennata) population breeding in southeastern Spai...

Understanding ecological interactions among protected species is crucial for correct management to avoid conflicting outcomes of conservation planning. The occurrence of a superior competitor may drive the exclusion of a subordinate contestant, as in Sicily where the largest European population of the lanner falcon is declining because of potential...

Wind is among the most important environmental factors shaping birds' migration patterns. Birds must deal with the displacement caused by crosswinds and their behaviour can vary according to different factors such as flight mode, migratory season, experience and distance to goal areas. Here we analyze the relationship between wind and migratory mov...

La telemetría vía satélite está permitiendo lograr grandes avances en el campo de la ecología de la migración. Hasta la fecha, la descripción básica de las rutas migratorias de muchas aves ya ha sido descrita. Sin embargo, el estudio de la migración a nivel individual, es decir, conocer el grado de repetibilidad de las rutas y el de su fenología, a...

The study of animals’ movement is subject of major interest in spatial ecology and behavioural ecology. Recent advances in tracking technologies have allowed a dramatic increase in our understanding of the spatial ecology and habitat use of many organisms, which is crucial for conservation planning and to inform management decisions regarding endan...

Sicily hosts the largest European population of the endangered lanner, which needs conservation planning based on habitat preferences. By GLMs and variation partitioning methods, we firstly described the distribution model at landscape scale to account for explanatory factors, pure and joint effects of greatest influence, extracted from variable su...

Moult is an extremely time-consuming and energy-demanding task for large birds. In addition, there is a trade-off between the time devoted to moulting and that invested in other activities such as breeding and/or territory exploration. Moreover, it takes a long time to grow a long feather in large birds, and large birds that need to fly while moult...

Background: The low prevalence of blood parasites in some bird species may be related to the habitats they frequent, the inexistence of the right host-parasite assemblage or the immunological capacity of the host. Here, we assess the parasite load of breeding populations of Eleonora's falcon (Falco eleonorae), a medium-sized long-distance migratory...

Las posibilidades de seguimiento remoto que nos ofrecen las tecnologías disponibles actualmente han revolucionado nuestra forma de estudiar y entender el comportamiento de los organismos, y muy en particular, de las aves. De hecho, gracias al rápido desarrollo de las diferentes técnicas de telemetría remota, podemos afirmar con rotundidad que hemos...

Conocer la ecología espacial de especies amenazadas es fundamental para tomar decisiones encaminadas a su adecuada gestión y conservación. Los buitres han evolucionado bajo un contexto de impredictibilidad en sus fuentes de alimento, es decir, aprovechando carroñas que aparecen de forma intermitente en el campo. Sin embargo, el papel que juegan las...