The SOS Sparrows Project aims to promote the conservation and/or recovery of urban bird populations in general and house sparrow populations in particular, through the creation and installation of specific nest boxes for passerine birds in the municipality of Torrevieja.

The nest boxes will be installed in different locations in Torrevieja, including the centres of ALPE, APANEE, AFA Torrevieja, IES Mare Nostrum, as well as in other educational centres and institutions.

In the last 20 years, urban bird populations have been reduced by up to 12%, and even in some species such as the well-known house sparrow (Passer domesticus), this reduction has reached more than 20%. This is an alarming symptom of a serious and growing problem in our cities. Aware of the sharp decline currently being suffered by bird populations associated with urban environments in general and the House Sparrow in particular, the SOS Sparrows Project was born, an initiative that arose from the collaboration of the Torrevieja City Council and the Empresa Mixta Aguas del Arco Mediterráneo S.A. (AGAMED), with the participation of the Faunatura Association as the executing party of the actions to be carried out.

The SOS Gorriones Project aims to promote the conservation and/or recovery of urban bird populations through the creation and installation of specific nest boxes for passerine birds in the municipality of Torrevieja. This will be carried out through the creation of a wide network of collaboration between centres and institutions, with which, through environmental education, dissemination and citizen participation, we can transform our town into a sustainable city where urban development and wild species can coexist. In this way, the SOS Urban Birds Project contributes to the fulfilment of the Sustainable Development Goals approved by the UN in 2015.

To meet the objectives of the SOS Urban Birds Project, it is essential to establish a broad network of collaboration between the Torrevieja City Council and AGAMED, as well as the Faunatura Association and different educational and social centres such as the ALPE Special Education School, the Centre of the Association of Parents of Students with Special Educational Needs (APANEE), the Centre of the Alzheimer Association of Relatives and Friends of Torrevieja (AFA Torrevieja), and the Mare Nostrum Secondary School (IES Mare Nostrum).

For the development of this project, a series of actions will be carried out focused on the promotion of citizen participation, environmental education and the establishment of bird populations in the urban environment.

Nest-box construction workshops

Nest boxes are artificial cavities that simulate holes and hollows in trees or rocks, so that they provide these animals with shelters for breeding, as well as perches in which to rest during their movements. They also facilitate the recovery of endangered species and at the same time allow us to study their demographic, ethological and phenological characteristics.

The construction of these nest boxes will be carried out through educational workshops in different centres in the municipality. Specifically, they will be carried out by the students of ALPE, APANEE and the elderly of the AFA Torrevieja Centre, as part of a workshop which aims to exercise the participants both physically and cognitively, as well as to stimulate their coordination and artistic expression, while transmitting environmental education values and establishing contact with nature and animals. To this end, participants will be provided with all the material necessary to assemble and varnish the nesting boxes. In addition, a video explaining the assembly process will be edited and delivered to the different centres. In this way, all unnecessary contact with the participants of the workshops will be avoided, as they are people belonging to vulnerable groups in relation to Covid-19.

Once assembled, the team of the Association will be responsible for collecting all the nesting boxes and install them in different parts of the municipality of Torrevieja. Among these points are the centres of ALPE, APANEE, AFA Torrevieja, the IES Mare Nostrum, as well as other educational centres and institutions.

Within the facilities of the IES Mare Nostrum, other actions will also be carried out. Firstly, all the nesting boxes installed in previous years will be checked and those that are deteriorated will be removed. These will be replaced with new ones. In addition, a spy nest-box will be installed, which will be equipped with a live webcam that will be connected to the centre's internet network. This installation will be carried out by the Faunatura Association team and the images from inside the nest boxes will be published on the Association's Youtube channel, and from there linked to the websites of the different institutions involved in the project.

This action will serve as a powerful tool for environmental education and dissemination of the actions, as students, teachers and users of the different centres as well as the rest of the public will be able to follow live the activity inside the nest-box spy, as well as the whole reproductive process, from the creation of the nest to the emancipation of the chicks, including the hatching of the chicks, the fattening and the learning of the first flights. All of them will be observers of this natural event, and will be involved in monitoring and protecting it.

A feeding trough for passerine birds will be installed in all participating centres. The feeder will be of the hanging hopper type for small seeds such as birdseed or millet. In addition, each centre will be provided with specific food for sparrows and other small birds.

In all cases, the Association's team will monitor the structures installed in the medium and long term, visiting the facilities 3 and 6 months after the nest boxes have been installed, evaluating their effectiveness by monitoring their use and occupation by the different species, identifying and counting these species, and repairing and/or modifying those structures that require it.
 

Expected results

The aim of these actions is to guarantee the survival of birds in general and especially of those species whose populations are in clear decline, as is the case of the house sparrow, by creating safe spaces for their establishment and reproduction.

It is therefore expected to observe a growing and gradual use of the structures installed by different species of urban birds at the chosen points in the medium to long term, until the establishment of the populations in the area is achieved, with the house sparrow (Passer domesticus) being the majority species expected.

On the other hand, the workshops are expected to be well received by the participants, as they will act as effective tools for environmental education and awareness-raising, allowing the public to learn about urban birds and the problems currently facing their populations, to become aware of the importance of their conservation and to collaborate actively in their care and recovery, through creative activities that are both physically and cognitively stimulating for the participants.

The SOS Sparrows Project will last for a total of six months from the start of the project.