Six associations in the Azores have issued an appeal in defense of the cagarro (Cory’s shearwater), calling for increased resources to implement the SOS Cagarro campaign and for the creation of a regional network of Wildlife Rehabilitation Centers.

In an assessment of this year’s campaign, which ran from October 15 to November 15, the six associations present five recommendations to improve the preservation of this species.

They call for an increase in the resources made available by government authorities to implement the SOS Cagarro campaign, noting that it relies primarily on volunteers with limited capacity.

“It has become urgent, for example, in addition to strengthening the work of nature wardens—who are essential for transporting and returning all rescued birds to the sea—to ensure the organized collaboration of SEPNA [the Nature and Environment Protection Service] of the National Republican Guard (GNR), the Maritime Police, the Volunteer Fire Brigades, staff from the various regional secretariats, and local municipalities,” they state.

The associations propose the creation of “a dedicated support telephone number for each of the larger islands to strengthen coordination between those who find the birds and the responsible authorities,” as well as the installation of signs “calling for reduced speed on the most problematic roads.”

They also advocate for the establishment of a genuine network of Wildlife Rehabilitation Centers in the Azores and the effective hiring of veterinarians specialized in wild birds.

According to the signatories, birds are often found with wounds and injuries, and without veterinary care they have “reduced chances of survival.”

“A region with the characteristics and importance of the Azores cannot afford to be without a network of centers dedicated to the care and rehabilitation of wildlife. It should be emphasized that the centers inaugurated a few years ago for this purpose never actually came to function fully,” they point out.

The associations argue that action is also needed in prevention, by significantly reducing nighttime light pollution “during the two or three weeks when juveniles leave their nests.”

“The efforts made so far are not sufficient, as demonstrated by the high number of birds that fell again this year,” they warn, considering that “it is necessary to set deadlines for the mandatory implementation of these measures in the most problematic areas of the region.”

The associations suggest the creation of protective measures for nesting colonies in coastal areas not included in protected zones and propose that the cagarro—“one of the most emblematic natural elements of the region”—be declared the “Regional Bird of the Azores.”

The statement is signed by the ecological associations Amigos dos Açores and Amigos do Calhau; the Association for the Promotion and Environmental Protection of the Azores (APPAA); the Azores chapter of the National Environmental Association IRIS; the São Miguel chapter of the National Association for Nature Conservation Quercus; and Avifauna dos Açores.

In Diário Insular-José Lourenço, director.