The Ministry of Environment and Territorial Planning of the Government of the Canary Islands, led by Domingo Berriel, has approved the Progress document of the Recovery Plan for the Jarillas de Guinate and Famara (Helianthemum Bramwelliorum and Helianthemum Gonzalezferreri), endangered species exclusive to Lanzarote, in order to guarantee their survival, according to an announcement published this Thursday in the Official Gazette of the Canary Islands (BOC).
"The objectives of this Recovery Plan will have been met when the populations of Helianthemum bramwelliorum and Helianthemum gonzalezferreri reach a total of 1,000 individuals respectively. It is expected that after the period of validity of the Plan, the optimal circumstances may exist for the delisting of both species, without the need for the development of a second document," the Ministry informs through a press release.
The species Helianthemum Bramwelliorum and Heliamthemum Gonzalezferreri are included in the category of "endangered" in the Catalog of Threatened Species of the Canary Islands as a consequence of the precarious state in which their populations are found due to the constant browsing of the specimens by herbivores.
The operational objectives set by the Plan are "to increase the natural numbers of each of the subpopulations to levels that ensure their preservation against catastrophes and stochastic risks, eliminate or reduce as much as possible the threat factors, and monitor the actions to analyze their effectiveness", the note adds.
The actions proposed in this document follow a pre-established scheme, with those aimed at increasing their natural numbers being of the highest priority, either through reinforcements or through reintroductions of individuals obtained ex situ to new enclaves, all complemented by the deposit of seeds in Germplasm Banks.
"The control of herbivore access to individuals or subpopulation nuclei through fencing, the stabling of loose goats and the dissemination of the damage that these can cause to the floristic richness of the area are also complementary actions", as explained by the Ministry.
This department orders that the Progress be submitted to a public information procedure, as well as the realization of institutional consultation with the affected territorial administrations, which are the Cabildo of Lanzarote and the City Council of Haría. Likewise, since the determinations of the Plan affect protected natural spaces of the Island, it orders that this document be submitted to a report from the Insular Board of Protected Natural Spaces of Lanzarote.
After the approval of the Progress of the Recovery Plan for the Jarillas de Guinate and Famara, by Resolution of the Vice-Ministry of the Environment dated May 12, 2008, the autonomous department also orders to submit, by inserting an announcement in the BOC, the aforementioned document to the public information procedure for a period of one month, during which any natural or legal person may consult it at the headquarters of the City Council of Haría and at the Administrative Service of the Vice-Ministry of the Environment, located in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.
