Press releases

A study by Ebro Delta Natural Park and the Estación Biológica de Doñana – CSIC highlights the severe decline of the European eel in recent years. The impacts of an invasive crab and inaction in fisheries management worsen the crisis of the European eel, considered a Critically Endangered species since 2008.

Franch N, Capdevila P, Fanlo H, Queral JM, Clavero M (2025) Recent ael decline in a large Mediterranean wetland. Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems https://doi.org/10.1002/aqc.70046

A study conducted by the Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII) and the Estación Biológica de Doñana (EBD-CSIC) has detected mosquitoes in Spain infected with Sindbis virus, a microorganism primarly hosted by birds and which can occasionally infect humans. The finding provides key information on the circulation of this virus in southern Europe and paves the way for further research to assess its potential impact on public health in Spain


Rafael Gutiérrez-López, María José Ruiz-López, Juan Ledesma, Sergio Magallanes, Cristina Nieto, Santiago Ruiz, Carolina Sanchez-Peña, Ulises Ameyugo, Juan Camacho, Sarai Varona, Isabel Cuesta, Isabel Jado-García, María Paz Sanchez-Seco, Jordi Figuerola, Ana Vázquez. First isolation of the Sindbis virus in mosquitoes from southwestern Spain reveals a new recent introduction from Africa. One Health, Volume 20, 2025, 100947, ISSN 2352-7714. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.onehlt.2024.100947

In a recent study published in Nature Sustainability, a scientific team led by the Doñana Biological Station emphasizes the untapped potential of tree crops for biodiversity conservation, socio-economic development, and climate change mitigation.

Carlos Martinez-Nuñez, Elena Velado-Alonso, Jacques Avelino, Pedro J. Rey, G. Martijn ten Hoopen. Guy Pe’er, Yi Zou, Yunhui Liu, Philip Antwi-Agyei, Adrien Rusch, Charles Staver, Tharaka S. Priyadarshana, Denis J. Sonwa, Damayanti Buchori, Lucas A. Garibaldi, Elena D. Concepción, Owen T. Lewis, Ivette Perfecto, Ignasi Bartomeus. Tailored policies for perennial woody crops are crucial to advance Sustainable Development. Nature Sustainability. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41893-024-01483-8

This new study predicts that, without the Montaña del Río dike currently limiting tidal and river flooding, sea level rise would result in the inundation of the marshes with estuarine water during spring tides. These changes could have negative consequences, including the alteration of the aquatic plant community and the spread of invasive species, which would require a specific adaptation plan.

-----

Inês Couto, Ana Picado, Marisela Des, Alejandro López-Ruiz, Manuel Díez Minguito, Ricardo Díaz-Delgado, rita Bastos, João Miguel Dias. Climate Change and Tidal Hydrodynamics of Guadalquivir Estuary and Doñana Marshes: A Comprehensive Review. Journal of Marine Science and Engineering. https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse12081443

Researchers from the Estación Biológica de Doñana and the Centre de Recherche en Sciences Naturelles conducted a five-week scientific expedition into one of the least-explored rainforests of central Africa. The grey parrot is an endangered species, mainly due to decades of heavy trapping to supply international pet markets.

The striking white colour of the barn owl (Tyto alba) might be an adaptation that makes it harder for its prey to spot when it flies against the night sky. This seemingly paradoxical claim is the conclusion of an interdisciplinary scientific study led by the Doñana Biological Station – CSIC recently published in the journal PNAS


Juan J. Negro, Salvador Bará, David Galadí-Enríquez, Juan Luis Nieves, Miguel A. Martínez, Alejandro Ferrero, Joaquín Campos, Carmen Bao-Varela, Eduard Masanai, and Carlos Camacho. Nocturnal camouflage through background matching against moonlight. PNAS. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2406808121

The ICTS Doñana is hosting the ECOFIRE research project, in collaboration with INFOCA, aimed at improving the National Park’s habitats

Researchers from the Doñana Biological Station (EBD-CSIC) have analysed data from 38 years of bird censuses in Doñana and the Western Palearctic, along with satellite images and meteorological data from 432 internationally important wetlands.

Miguel de Felipe, Juan A. Amat, José Luis Arroyo, Rubén Rodríguez, Carmen Díaz-Paniagua. "Habitat changes at the local scale have major impacts on waterfowl populations across a migratory flyway". Global Change Biology. DOI: 10.1111/gcb.17600

The new species was named Lipoptena andaluciensis, after the region where it was found, Andalusia. Of all especimen analized, three harboured pathogens of public health significance such as Coixella burnetti and two bacterial endosymbionts


Mikel Alexander González, Ignacio Ruiz-Arrondo, Sergio Magallanes, Jozef Oboňa, María José Ruiz-López, Jordi Figuerola. Molecular and morphological analysis revealed a new Lipoptena species (Diptera: Hippoboscidae) in southern Spain harbouring Coxiella burnetii and bacterial endosymbionts. Veterinary Parasitology. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vetpar.2024.110300

The study, led by Germán Orizaola, professor of Zoology at the University of Oviedo, and researcher Pablo Burraco, from the Doñana-CSIC Biological Station, has just been published in the journal ‘Biology Letters’ of the British Royal Society. International researchers have collaborated in this work to accurately analyse the long-term effects of the nuclear power plant accident on wildlife.


Pablo Burraco, Caitlin Gabor, Amanda Bryant, Vanessa Gardette, Thierry Lengagne, Jean-Marc Bonzom, Germán Orizaola 2024. Ionizing frogs radiation has negligible effects on the age, telomere length, and corticosterone levels of Chernóbil tree. Biology Letters 20, 20240287. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2024.0287