Provence project will restore 132 hectares for Iberian Grey Shrikes
Mechanical clearance, controlled burning and grazing will be used to reopen Mediterranean scrub within the Garrigues de Lancon Natura 2000 site.
A new restoration programme in Provence will reopen 132 hectares of Mediterranean garrigue for Iberian Grey Shrikes, one of France's most threatened breeding birds.
LPO Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur has launched the PREGO project within the Garrigues de Lançon et chaînes alentour Natura 2000 site in Bouches-du-Rhône. The work is intended to reverse the gradual loss of the open and semi-open habitats used by the shrike.
Traditional grazing and other rural land uses once maintained a varied landscape of low scrub, grassland and scattered bushes. As farming has retreated from some areas, denser vegetation has spread and reduced the open hunting ground required by Iberian Grey Shrikes.
PREGO will use a combination of mechanical scrub clearance, controlled burning and grazing. Rather than removing all vegetation, the aim is to create a mosaic that retains lookout perches and nesting cover while restoring open ground where the birds can find large insects and small vertebrates.
The programme also includes ecological monitoring and coordination by LPO PACA. Staff plan to improve knowledge of the remaining shrike territories and help land managers take the species into account when maintaining the restored areas.
Iberian Grey Shrikes require more than a one-off clearance operation. Without follow-up grazing or other management, Mediterranean scrub can close again, while work carried out at the wrong time could disturb breeding birds. The project therefore combines habitat intervention with continuing oversight.
LPO PACA says the programme should also strengthen ecological connectivity and make the garrigue more resilient to climate-related pressures. A more varied vegetation structure can provide habitat for a wider range of wildlife and may reduce the uniform build-up of dense scrub.
The European Regional Development Fund is contributing €254,075.12. Support also comes from the French state, the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, the Bouches-du-Rhône department and the Ecofaune association at Parc animalier de La Barben.
A project steering meeting was held on 24 August, bringing the partners together to begin delivery. The scheme forms part of a wider effort to conserve France's shrikes, a group that has suffered heavily from changes in farming, insect decline and the loss of structurally diverse open country.
The 132-hectare target describes habitat due to be restored, not a recovery already achieved. Future monitoring will be needed to show whether Iberian Grey Shrikes occupy the managed ground and whether breeding performance improves as the new habitat mosaic develops.
21 Sep 2026
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