Spain Reports Rise in Marbled Duck Breeding Numbers Following Wetland Restoration Project

Spain recorded 172 breeding female marbled ducks and 1,427 chicks in 2025, showing a notable increase from the 20 breeding pairs counted in 2009. These findings were detailed in the final results of the LIFE Cerceta Pardilla conservation project, published in March 2026.

Project Scope and Wetland Restoration

The initiative, which began in January 2021 and concluded in 2026, was co-financed by the European Union's LIFE programme and Spain's Ministry for the Ecological Transition through its Directorate-General for Water. According to project data:

• More than 3,600 hectares of wetlands were restored across target regions.
• The project acquired the 90-hectare La Raja estate within El Hondo Natural Park in Alicante province in 2024.
• Restoration work in Seville's Brazo del Este Natural Area covered 24 hectares, while interventions in Murcia included revegetation and reedbed management.

Captive Breeding and Monitoring

Ongoing Risks and Population Interpretation

While the project reported the release of 3,769 captive-bred ducks across Spain, Italy, and Portugal, researchers note that reintroductions complicate efforts to measure natural population growth. BirdLife International data from a 2022 estimate indicated that a large portion of the Iberian breeding population consisted of released birds, though that figure does not represent the 2025 population directly. The species remains classified as Near Threatened globally by the IUCN and Critically Endangered in Spain, facing ongoing pressures from habitat degradation, water shortages, and hunting.