Historical review

In the 1950s, José Antonio Valverde, then a young biologist and naturalist, visited Doñana and was fascinated by the ecological richness of the area. In 1952, he and fellow naturalist Francisco Bernis conducted the first bird ringing in this natural space. At that time, Doñana was a hunting reserve.

After several bird ringing campaigns, José Antonio Valverde led a campaign for the conservation of Doñana's natural values, which had a great impact both nationally and internationally. His efforts to preserve the enclave culminated in 1963 in an international collection, led by WWF, to acquire the first estate in Doñana dedicated entirely to conservation and research. A year later, his impulse was key in the creation, by the then-president of the Spanish National Research Council, José Ibáñez Martín, of the Biological Station of Doñana, a research institute dedicated to the study of terrestrial ecology.

The scientific activity of the Biological Station originally focused on the Doñana region and its surroundings. However, soon its scope of action was expanded to other systems both within and outside of Spain. Currently, the Biological Station of Doñana is a reference research institute in the world of biodiversity and its conservation, and carries out its research in different parts of the world