International Fund for Houbara Conservation, Natural Heritage Foundation of Castile and Leon sign MoU

The International Fund for Houbara Conservation,IFHC, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, with the Natural Heritage Foundation of Castile and Leon in Spain, to harness their knowledge and expertise to preserve the "Small Houbara Bustard," which BirdLife International warns as being threatened with extinction.

The MoU, which was signed in Abu Dhabi, aims to conduct a field study to evaluate the numbers of birds and their current status in the Spanish provinces of Castile and

Leon, as well as to form a joint scientific committee and create effective programmes to preserve this species.

Both sides agreed to work together to establish an experimental project, through an integrated ecological monitoring protocol and to preserve the species, in cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Environment in Spain and the European Commission.

Majid Ali Al Mansouri, Managing Director of the IFHC, said, "Abu Dhabi has a long record of success with its proactive model in preserving the species, and we look forward to working with our international partners to apply our knowledge and expertise in preserving these species, which might face the threat of extinction."

The small Houbaras are considered the birds of the northern hemisphere. They form two separate geographic groups: the Western Group in the European Union countries and the Eastern Group in South Eurasia. The total number is estimated at around 260,000 adult birds, 60 percent of which are present in the Western Group, with between 71,000 and 147,000 birds in Spain.

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