Photo: Iñaki Relanzón
328 Montseny brook newts, those small amphibians native to this massif that are the most endangered in Europe, were released into a mountain stream a few weeks ago. We, the institutions making up the Life Tritó Montseny project, coordinated by Barcelona Provincial Council, are managing to keep the species from extinction, through the constant work carried out by our breeding centres. The newts reintroduced to the wild this time were 60 juveniles and 268 larvae, hatched in Barcelona Zoo and at the Catalan government’s Torreferrussa and the Pont de Suert Fauna Centres.
Each release is the result of complex coordination work between different scientists --ecologists, geneticists, geologists, herpetologists and specialists in population dynamics-- to ensure we are choosing healthy and genetically suitable individuals for founding a population with a future, and a stream with the special conditions needed by this species.
The task now will be to carefully monitor the new population that has been reintroduced. Expert herpetologists will carry out periodic counts which they will share with the work group overseeing this amphibious treasure of ours!
