A la recerca d’una espècie críptica a l’illa de La Palma: la baldriga pufí

Adrià Bellmunt is a young researcher, biologist and ornithologist, enthusiastic about seabirds and their ecology. Committed to the conservation of the natural environment, he dedicates his work to generating scientific knowledge and promoting applied research with a real impact on biodiversity and ecosystems.

During his talk, he will speak about how essential it is to know the population status and breeding areas of the Manx shearwater (Puffinus puffinus canariensis) for its conservation. This study, carried out on the island of La Palma between February and May 2025 and 2026, aims to identify nesting areas and estimate the abundance of the population. Nocturnal surveys were combined with thermal viewers, acoustic recorders, drone flights, historical fallout data, and observations from the coast and at sea. The results showed greater activity in the Carmona and Rivero ravines, coinciding with a higher presence of individuals in rafts of Cory’s shearwater (Calonectris borealis) located between 1.5 and 2 km from the coast, off the mouths of those same ravines.

The capture and tagging of 19 individuals with GPS/GSM devices made it possible to locate nesting areas in the northeastern ravines and to model the potential distribution of nests across the entire island. Overall, the results suggest a small population of around 100 pairs, widely distributed but with a low breeding density. Their dispersed breeding in unprotected areas, exposure to invasive predators, and light pollution highlight the fragility of the population and the need to strengthen its management and conservation.

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