Pilar Mazo
Calahorra (La Rioja), (EFE).- The El Recuenco wetland, in the municipality of Calahorra (La Rioja), constitutes an interesting habitat in the Ebro valley for the reproduction of herons, with up to 120 pairs of six species different from these birds, of which 10 are imperial; and that make it a paradise for this type of waders.
What in the past was an irrigation infrastructure, created from an endorheic lagoon to irrigate farms on the left bank of N-232, in 2010 it was included in the Spanish Inventory of Wetlands and in 2017 it was declared a Singular Natural Area within the Singular Natural Area of Wetlands and Yasas of La Degollada and El Recuenco.
With 233 hectares, this habitat forms a good representation of the Ebro Valley wetlands of interest to birds, both in nesting periods and in migration and wintering, as it is a steppe plain furrowed by ravines, yasas and the El Reservoir. I recount.
This is how the biologist from the Nature Conservation Service of the Government of La Rioja, David Martín Civera, explains it to EFE, who, at the foot of the wetland, reviews the value of this habitat, in which, in addition, in winter and during the passage migratory, its shores and wetlands serve as a stopover and refuge for wading birds.
The singular interest of El Recuenco is its 9.34 hectares of water sheet, which have allowed it to form a varied aquatic ecosystem of importance for the ardent species -herons-, which have found a paradise for nesting in this place.
From the common night heron to the purple heron
The breeding population can reach up to 120 pairs of six different species of herons, such as the common heron, cattle egret, little egret, gray heron, purple heron and little bittern.
In recent years, the nesting of other rare and unique birds has been verified, such as the black-necked grebe, the common purple swine or the mustachioed swine, which has a recently occupied population of 2 or 3 resident pairs in El Recuenco.
Studies carried out on the European pond turtle, before the declaration of this area as a protected natural space, also identified this humid space as a place with a habitat capable of hosting the species, specifically, an autochthonous pond turtle classified as vulnerable and with a significant decline. in the Ebro valley.
Among the most characteristic and unique birds that nest in this area are the stock pigeon, the little owl, the bee-eater, the mountain lark, the stone curlew, the short-crowned pipit, the yellow wheatear and the thyme warbler.
The community of nesting birds in this area is completed with others common to other wetlands in the Ebro Valley, such as the marsh harrier, the mallard, the coot, the great crested grebe, the common grebe, the common redfish, the European rail, the warbler and thrush.
improve conservation
With an investment of 249,000 euros from European funds, the Government of La Rioja has recently acquired 27.4 hectares in this area, including the 11 occupied by the El Recuenco reservoir.
In addition, the purchase of the wetland also includes the surrounding steppe areas, a habitat in decline and home to some of the most threatened bird groups.
As explained to EFE by the Minister of Sustainability and Government spokesman, Alex Dorado Nájera, the objective of this acquisition has been to improve the management of these natural spaces to facilitate the conservation and restoration of biodiversity.
He has cited the Biodiversity and Natural Heritage Law of La Rioja, promoted by the regional government, among whose priorities is the conservation and restoration of wetlands.
One of the main novelties of the standard is to establish a list with the wetlands present in La Rioja to declare these projects as of public utility and proceed with their restoration, in line with the priorities of the Government of Spain, the EU and international agreements.
Currently, there are 49 La Rioja wetlands that are part of the Spanish Inventory of Wetlands, an instrument formulated by the State Law of Natural Heritage and Biodiversity to know the number, extent and state of conservation of these ecosystems. EFE