Cinereous vulture chicks have hatched in Spain’s Iberian Highlands for the first time in around a century. With the species also breeding again in Bulgaria’s Rhodope Mountains following a 30-year absence, these twin milestones show how long-term rewilding efforts are effectively restoring one of Europe’s largest birds of prey across its former range.
Large herbivores such as horses and Tauros need to live naturally in rewilding areas if they are to deliver their full ecological benefits. A collaboration between The Lifescape Project, Rewilding Europe, and Rewilding Spain has shown this is partly possible under existing European law, but that further legal changes are still essential.
In a historic step for rewilding in Spain, nine European bison have been released for the first time in the Iberian Highlands. As part of an international study, they will help unlock vital insights into how bison can restore ecosystems across Europe, while also bringing renewed hope and opportunity to the local community of El Recuenco.
For the first time in history, Przewalski’s horses have been released into a protected area of Spain’s Iberian Highlands. This milestone introduction will help shape a wilder landscape, drive nature-based tourism, and support the recovery of this iconic subspecies.
The Iberian Highlands of Spain have struggled with rural depopulation and economic decline for many years. Today, rewilding is helping communities in the landscape turn these challenges into new opportunities — creating jobs, supporting local businesses, and enabling nature to become a powerful driver of local prosperity.
In the Iberian Highlands rewilding landscape in Spain, an ambitious volunteering programme is advancing rewilding efforts, equipping participants with valuable knowledge and skills, and creating passionate new advocates for nature recovery.
In 2024, a rewilding education programme saw more than 400 students from Spain’s Iberian Highlands learn more about Tauros and nature recovery in their local landscape. The highly engaging programme proved so successful it will be scaled up next year.
Four cinereous vultures have just been released in the Iberian Highlands in Spain, as part of an ongoing reintroduction programme. The restoration of this iconic and ecologically important bird as a breeding species will enhance the health of the rewilding landscape and support nature-based economic development.
Rewilding is transforming the outlook for communities and nature in eastern Spain’s Iberian Highlands. A new documentary by award-winning filmmaker Emmanuel Rondeau, which recently premiered in one of the landscape’s most beautiful al fresco settings, tells an intimate story of this transformation.
Rewilding Spain has signed its first agreement to protect an old-growth forest in the Iberian Highlands. A change in forest management will support natural regeneration, delivering benefits to both nature and people. With other owners of old-growth forests interested in signing similar agreements, there is significant scaling-up potential.
