Unhurried, the female bear 'Villarina' strolls through the forest in the Cantabrian Mountains in Northern Spain, wallowing in the leaves. With a hidden camera, EuroNatur partner Fapas succeeded in capturing rare insights into the life of the young bear. "'Villarina' is strong and in rude health. I assume that she will have her first offspring in spring next year", concludes Roberto Hartasánchez, director of Fapas, from the video material.
This positive development is all the more good news, because 'Villarina' had a difficult start to her life. In June 2008, tourists found the then six-year-old bear on a road in the Nature Park Somiedo, in the west of the Cantabrian Mountains. She seemed puzzled and alone and had probably been hit by a car. She was then looked after in an animal clinic and after her recovery released into the wild in a valley of the Cantabrian Mountains where she could find plenty of food. In June 2010, a picture from a hidden camera delivered the proof for her successful reintroduction. Now, the current video records deliver further evidence that 'Villarina' is in good health and well on her way to add to the bear population of the Cantabrian Mountains.
Since mid of the nineties, EuroNatur and Fapas have been active in protecting this spectacular mountain range close to the Atlantic coast in northern Spain as habitat for brown bears. Thanks to their consistent efforts, the conditions for brown bears have slowly, but steadily been improving, at least in the western parts of the Cantabrian Mountains.