Urban Planning, Ecological Transition, Urban Services and Housing

Barcelona Zoo continues to pursue a model which promotes the research and conservation of local fauna by freeing three native species into their natural habitats: the Mediterranean pond turtle, the Montseny brook newt and Hermann’s tortoise. All three species are listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as endangered species.

Mediterranean pond turtle

Last week saw 27 individuals (Maurenys leprosa) freed into the protected natural spaces of Tet-ca l’Arana and Remolar-Filipines as part of the conservation project for this species, started in 2012 and promoted by Barcelona Zoo and the Consortium for the Natural Spaces of the Llobregat Delta. This is the fourth year running that individuals of this species have been freed into the wild, with twenty tortoises born in the Zoo and a further 7 from the Catalan Centre for the Recovery of Amphibians and Reptiles (CRARC), which also collaborates on the project.

Each tortoise was marked with a specific code at the edge of their shells or a chip to allow for an assessment of how they adapt to nature. Twelve of the individuals freed also have GPS trackers on their shells, to locate their position and check their body temperature. These emitters will enable their movement to be monitored and provide valuable information on aspects such as dispersion, types of habitat elected and routes used.

Montseny brook newt

This week also saw 500 Montseny brook newts (Calotriton arnoldi) reintroduced into their natural habitat, 58 of them from larvae from Barcelona Zoo. Their release comes on top of the 328 individuals of this species reintroduced in May and June this year. Some 1,500 have been released since the start of the project LIFE Tritó Montseny.

The goals of this project are to maintain a genetic pool from different breeding centres to ensure the future of the species and expand its area of distribution by releasing individuals into new streams.

Hermann’s tortoise

Wednesday, 27 October brought the release of 51 specimens of Hermann’s tortoise (Testudo hermanii), 16 of which were born at Barcelona Zoo in 2020. In this case, the reintroduction was carried out at the Vall de Bovera, in the county of Les Garrigues. The process was conducted with the collaboration with the Associació Trenca, and on this occasion will now include the use of trained dogs to monitor the individuals released. The reintroduction is part of the recovery plan for this species, carried out by the Catalan Centre for the Recovery of Amphibians and Reptiles (CRARC) and directed by the Government of Catalonia.