Start Date
End Date
Project Summary
The LIFE CAÑADAS project aims to carry out conservation and ecological restoration actions along the livestock trails in the Community of Madrid and the Cañada Real Conquense, in the Community of Castilla-La Mancha, in order to recover their ecological role and improve the connectivity between Natura 2000 Network areas. While in the Cañada Real Cuenca some transumant herds are still maintained, the network of livestock trails in the Community of Madrid is largely deteriorated by neglect, erosion, and encroachment by other uses, leading to a severe loss of biodiversity.
Themes
Biogeoghraphic Region
Objective
The LIFE CAÑADAS project aims to conserve and restore traditional livestock corridors known as cañadas, historic roads used for seasonal livestock movements (trashumancia), in order to reconnect fragmented natural areas within the EU’s Natura 2000 network and enhance biodiversity through their multifunctional ecological roles. It seeks to demonstrate that these ancient routes, when properly managed, act as green infrastructure that supports landscape connectivity, species movements, and ecosystem services, while preserving cultural heritage and sustainable pastoral practices.
Good Practice Description
This project aims to implement conservation and ecological restoration measures along the trails used by transhumant livestock. Among the main objectives are the assessment of the conservation status of one of the largest pastoral routes in the Community of Madrid and the identification of priority areas to ensure ecological connectivity between Natura 2000 network sites.
The project also includes the restoration of strategic trails and the promotion of traditional extensive grazing practices. Management criteria and priorities are also defined for inclusion in a future green infrastructure strategy in Spain, with a particular focus on the network of livestock trails and the creation of an appropriate institutional framework for their sustainable management.
This is a good practice, as it promotes transhumance trails, recognising not only their ecological importance but also their potential role in connectivity between Natura 2000 network protected areas. The project also promotes awareness among local stakeholders, spreading knowledge about the importance of pastoral trails for biodiversity conservation and landscape cohesion, and proposing a future management strategy.
Tools and Equipment
To replicate the LIFE CAÑADAS Good Practice, the tools and equipment should support the full cycle of diagnosis, planning, restoration, and monitoring activities. This includes GIS and spatial analysis software, GPS devices, ecological assessment protocols, and participatory workshop tools to evaluate livestock trails and engage stakeholders in decision-making. Restoration actions require basic field equipment for vegetation management, trail marking, installation of fences and barriers, construction of small crossings, removal of illegal dumping, and the establishment of grazing-support infrastructure such as watering points and resting areas. Habitat restoration may involve planting materials and tools to recover hedgerows and structural landscape elements, as well as temporary fencing or management infrastructure to regulate herbivory. Monitoring activities depend on biodiversity survey kits, camera traps, soil sampling tools, data collection devices, and survey platforms to assess ecological functionality and social perceptions.
Personnel
A multidisciplinary team is required to cover ecological, social, and administrative aspects. Ecologists, conservation biologists, and restoration practitioners are needed for habitat assessments, ecological monitoring, and trail restoration. GIS specialists and technical planners support spatial analysis and restoration design, while livestock experts and shepherds contribute traditional knowledge of grazing management and transhumance practices. Environmental educators, outreach coordinators, and communication specialists handle public awareness, school workshops, and dissemination of project results. Project managers, administrative staff, and financial officers oversee coordination, reporting, and compliance, supported by scientific advisors and an external technical committee to guide restoration and monitoring decisions.
Problems and Threats Faced
Despite their ecological and cultural value, the cañadas and other vías pecuarias (livestock trails) face numerous threats:
- Abandonment and reduced use of traditional seasonal livestock movements (trashumancia), diminishing the ecological role of grazing along these routes.
- Land encroachment, urbanisation, and agricultural intensification, leading to loss, fragmentation and degradation of the corridors.
- Decline of biodiversity and habitat quality, as inactive corridors lose their semi-natural vegetation and connectivity values.
- Isolation of protected areas, reducing ecological flows between Natura 2000 sites and undermining resilience to environmental change.
- Loss of cultural heritage and traditional knowledge, linked to the decreasing practice of long-distance pastoralism.
These factors weaken both ecosystem functioning and rural viability, making it urgent to revitalise the cañadas as living cultural-ecological systems.