LIFE BEARS WITH FUTURE Signing of collaboration agreements with the hunting federations of Asturias, Cantabria and Castilla y León. December 2023

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Within the framework of the LIFE Osos con Futuro project, the Brown Bear Foundation (FOP) has signed collaboration agreements with the hunting federations of Asturias, Castilla y León and Cantabria. The objective in all these cases is to inform and raise awareness amongst their members, so that the hunting activities in winter are carried out in the safest possible manner for both the hunters and the bears.

The hunting federations with which agreements have been signed within the LIFE project framework are:

  • Cantabrian Hunting Federation
  • Castilla y León Hunting Federation
  • Principality of Asturias Hunting Federation

The FOP is preparing specific material for this collective. More precisely, an animated video and a digital infograph are in preparation which will be distributed to the federations and also available via the general information channels of these federations and the FOP. These informative actions will be backed up with presential meetings with hunters in which the recommendations for hunting in bear areas will be presented and debated.

Signing of collaboration agreements with the hunting federations of Asturias, Castilla y León and Cantabria

A coordinated project

The “Bears with Future” Project, co-financed by the European Union LIFE Project, will be carried out until 2025. It is coordinated by the Brown Bear Foundation in partnership with the Biodiversity Foundation (Ministry for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge), and the Natural heritage Foundation of the Castilla y León regional government. The Government of Asturias is co-financer, via the Directorate General for the Environment and Rural Planning, of the Department of Rural Development, Agriculture and Fisheries. Tierra Pura Foundation collaborates technically and co-finances the project.

Signing of collaboration agreements with the mountain sports federations of Asturias, Cantabria and Castilla y León. December 2022

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Within the framework of the LIFE Osos con Futuro project, the Fundación Oso Pardo (FOP) has signed collaboration agreements with the mountain sports federations of Asturias, Castilla y León and Cantabria. The objective in all these cases is to inform and raise awareness, so that the practice of these activities in winter is carried out in the safest manner possible for both the participants and the bears.

Global warming favours either a reduction in the hibernation of the brown bear, or leads to no hibernation at all. Additionally, coinciding with a greater winter presence of active bears, outdoors recreational activities are also increasing, especially in winter as a result of a warmer climate. This convergence may increase the possibilities of encounters and interactions between bears and humans, hence the necessity to inform about the best practices to avoid them.

The FOP has produced an animated video for this collective, the “Recommendations for visiting the brown bear mountains”, which is being widely broadcast in conjunction with the mountain sports federations. A digital information infograph is being finalised which will be distributed to all of these federations. In order to finalise these actions, a series of routes will be developed during which a FOP specialist will explain in situ the best mountaineering practices to undertake in bear areas.

The mountain sports federations with which agreements have been signed within the LIFE project framework are:

  • Castilla y León Mountain Sports, Climbing and Hiking Federation
  • Principality of Asturias Mountain Sports, Climbing and Hiking Federation
  • Cantabrian Mountain Sports and Climbing Federation

Recreational activity in winter in a mountain with bears

A coordinated project

The “Bears with Future” Project, co-financed by the European Union LIFE Project, will be carried out until 2025. It is coordinated by the Brown Bear Foundation in partnership with the Biodiversity Foundation (Ministry for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge), and the Natural heritage Foundation of the Castilla y León regional government. The Government of Asturias is co-financer, via the Directorate General for the Environment and Rural Planning, of the Department of Rural Development, Agriculture and Fisheries. Tierra Pura Foundation collaborates technically and co-finances the project.

The project’s first planting campaign commences in the Alto Sil in León. December 2022

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The first campaign of trophic enrichment plantations for the brown bear was started on 12 December 2022 in the Alto Sil area of León, within the LIFE Osos con futuro project framework and which by the end will comprise the planting of 150 thousand fruit trees and 25 thousand sweet chestnut trees occupying a total of 200 hectares spread across different parts of Castilla y León and Asturias.

The plantations are being made in the public utility lands belonging to the Anllares del Sil local council, in the municipality of Páramo del Sil and of the public mountains of Palacios del Sil. Planting will also be undertaken in land belonging to the Anllarinos del Sil local council, other areas of Páramo del Sil, as well as in private estates of both municipalities. A land custody agreement guaranteeing the long-term presence of these plantations is signed with each landowner prior to work commencing. Planting will also be undertaken in those farmlands acquired with LIFE funds.

Selection of the areas for planting was first undertaken by the project via suitability studies based on plant species and land characteristics in relation to climate change.

Fruit plantation in Páramo del Sil, with local workers hired under the LIFE project. In the center, Elías Suárez, from the FOP.

Local teams started preparing the ground in October 2022 for the hole digging and scrub clearance using a walking excavator, a machine which is able to reach difficult-to-access areas and work on steep slopes, but which produces a minimum impact on the terrain and the existing vegetation. This mechanised labour guarantees the clearance of large amounts of soil for each hole, greatly facilitating the rootstock development of the plants.

The tree and shrub species being planted, the fruits of which serve as food for the brown bear from the end of spring through to the start of winter, are cherry, apple, alder buckthorn, rowan and whitebeams, while chestnut planting will also start very shortly. Collection programs of native wild seeds for the nursery production of seedlings have been undertaken since the start of the project. Two forestry teams, each comprising three men and three women from the immediate area, have been contracted, contributing to local job creation. A total of close to 70,000 fruiting trees and shrubs are planned to be planted during this first plantation campaign, which will be completed between the end of March and start of April, depending on meteorological conditions.

A coordinated project

The “Bears with Future” Project, co-financed by the European Union LIFE Project, will be carried out until 2025. It is coordinated by the Brown Bear Foundation in partnership with the Biodiversity Foundation (Ministry for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge), and the Natural heritage Foundation of the Castilla y León regional government. The Government of Asturias is co-financer, via the Directorate General for the Environment and Rural Planning, of the Department of Rural Development, Agriculture and Fisheries. Tierra Pura Foundation collaborates technically and co-finances the project.