Led by WWF, LIFE Iberconejo aims to improve the conservation status of rabbit populations where required and, at the same time, prevent the damage they cause to agriculture in other areas. To this end, it has representatives of all the social agents involved in both Portugal and Spain.
El European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) It is an Iberian endemism and a key species in the Mediterranean forest, where it plays a fundamental role as it is prey to around 40 species of predators, among which are the Iberian lynx and the imperial eagle. He is also a true "ecosystem engineer", with a great capacity to modify his environment and, consequently, the availability of resources for himself and for other species. It also has a high socioeconomic interest because it is the main piece of small game and because it is the species that causes the most damage to agriculture.
In the last 70 years, rabbit populations in the Iberian Peninsula have decreased by more than 90% due to changes in land use and diseases. This led the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) to declare it “In danger of extinction” in 2019. Paradoxically, in certain areas of our geography their population numbers are very abundant, enough to cause significant damage to agricultural fields.
The LIFE Iberconejo project, which will run until December 2024, is an essential step for rabbit populations to stabilize and recover their key role in the ecosystem but, at the same time, so that the promotion of this key Mediterranean species does not cause damage to agriculture. This is a management challenge that must be addressed from all points of view through a participatory governance structure.Therefore, it has 15 entities with very diverse and complementary profiles as partners, including conservation associations, wildlife managers, scientists, farmers, hunters and administrations.
The rabbit is an Iberian endemism and a key species in the Mediterranean forest, where it plays a fundamental role as it is prey to around 40 species of predators.
The LIFE Oberconejo aims to know the Current status of rabbit populations, their health status and the reality of their economic effects in the Iberian Peninsula. To this end, the coordinated adoption of standardized protocols for monitoring rabbit populations will be designed and promoted, and the necessary personnel will be trained for the implementation of said protocols.
In parallel, work will be done on the collection of regional good management practices, both for the promotion of populations, and for the reduction of the damage it produces. At the same time, it will create a governance system that progressively includes all the key actors and all the administrations with competences in the management of the species, beyond those involved in the project.
LIFE Iberconejo is coordinated by WWF Spain and other entities are among the partners environmental, such as the Foundation for the Conservation of Biodiversity and its Habitat (CBD Habitat Foundation) and the Associação Natureza Portugal (ANP/WWF); research centersand Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (IREC – CSIC, UCLM, JCCM), the National Institute for Agricultural and Veterinary Research (INIAV), the Faculdade de Ciencias da Universidade do Porto (CIBIO-BIOPOLIS), the Institute of Advanced Social Studies (IESA – CSIC) and the San Pablo CEU University Foundation; agricultural entities, such as the Union of Small Farmers and Ranchers (UPA); and hunting entitiessuch as the Royal Spanish Hunting Federation (RFEC) and the National Association of Caça Owners and Producers (ANPC).
To these partners we must also add several administrations, such as the Juntas de Andalucía, Castilla-La Mancha and Extremadura, as well as the Instituto da Conservação da Natureza e das Florestas (ICNF).
Ramón Pérez de Ayala, WWF coordinator of LIFE Iberconejo, points out that "Iberconejo will lay the foundations for the long-term management of the wild rabbit. Although it is not possible to pretend to solve the complex problems that affect the species, nor to expect a global recovery of its populations in the period covered by the project, the reality is that without the solutions that Iberconejo is going to develop and implement, it is not possible either. face effective management that allows us to maintain our ecosystems while reducing associated social conflicts".