Lesser Kestrel is a small predatory bird bound to the cereal pseudesteppe characteristic of the mediterranean countries: France, Italy, Grece, Turkey, Portugal, Rumania and mainly Spain.
The world population of this species is estimated between 15,000 and 20,000 specimen, 42% of which lives in Spain. Castilla y León is the autonomous community that shelters the highest quantity of Lesser Kestrel after Andalucía and Extremadura and almost 50% of its population concentrates in the BSPZ of Villafáfila.
Nevertheless, current numbers confirm an important regression of this species during the last three decades. In Spain this population has decreased about 95%.
The main causes of this important regression are the following:
Changes in the steppe habitat
Disappearance of appropriate places to site nests
Ambiente
In Tierra de Campos, Lesser Kestrel has always sited its nests among the roof tiles of the typical human buildings: houses, dovecotes, farmyards and other agricultural constructions. During the last years preferences related to building materials used in home construction and others have changed. The old roof tiles have been substituted by new roof models that do not allow this predatory bird placing its nests. At times, deserted due to the lack of use causes the progressive deterioration of constructions such as traditional dovecotes.
Modernization of farming tools as well as crops intensification have caused severe changes in the structure and behavior of the steppe ecosystem, circumstances to which Lesser Kestrel and most steppe species have not been able to cope.
Primilla
The income of european funds through the Zonal Preservation of Steppe Ecosystem Program and "LIFE Great Bustard" and "LIFE Lesser Kestrel" programs tries to cooperate in the recovery of a more traditional way of functioning in agreement with the type of land and the fauna it shelters, like this the main values of these lands are reinforced. Maintaining traditional crops and introducing controls over some stages of cultivation is allowing the recovery of some of the most emblematic species of steppe faune in the EU, such as Lesser Kestrel, Great Bustard, Little Bustard and Black-bellied Sandgrouse.
