The Provincial Council of Álava, with the aim of attracting visitors and fans of nature photography, has awarded the tourism management project of the Observatory and Dining Room of Birds Carroñeras, for an amount of 21,366 euros. He has taken as an example other projects of the Spanish State, such as that of Ainsa (Huesca), a pilgrimage centre for many Basques. In the first phase, which has also led to our arrival, one of the main objectives will be the familiarisation of birds with tourism, as we have read in Alea.eus. To do so, they will be provided with complementary feeding for eleven months. Pilot visits in groups of up to five people will be carried out in the second phase.

We also found the recommendations to prepare the scenery curious so that visitors can take the best possible photos:"Due to the aesthetic requirements that this activity requires, the successful company will have to make a small improvement in the dining room. In this improvement, climbing plants or shrubs will be planted next to the perimeter fence and a "scenography" will be performed in front of the observatory. The scenography, on the other hand, must have natural elements such as logs or stones to make a scene more attractive to photograph or film".

The largest colony of Leonate Vultures at CAPV

The largest number of leonated vultures of the CAPV is located in Álava – more than half – and the largest colony is that of Valderejo. According to the latest data from 2019, there are 103 vulture pairs in Valdegovía Park, according to journalist Estitxu Ugarte. The Valderejo feeder opened in the 1970s on a hill north-west of the village of Lahoz. Between 2001 and 2007, no animals were left dead on site due to bovine spongiform encephalopathy. In 2007, the perimeter of the feeder (about 11,800 square meters) was shortened.

The 2007 newspapers reported that the installation of vulture feeders had a clear objective: to prevent birds from attacking cattle, as fewer animals were deposited in the mountains as a result of the "mad cow" disease. As a result, vultures were looking for more and more food in landfills. There was also another reason why vultures attacked livestock. As explained by the Environment Deputy of Álava, Mikel Mintegi, when the dining room in the Badaia Mountains was closed – the slopes of the wind mills next to the wind farm hit the vultures – the birds began to seek food in other ways, as we have read in El Correo.

The fact is that, by pulling away the motto that has made us smile at first sight, interesting issues emerge, beyond the objective of attracting tourists. Because the presence of vultures is important for the environment, since the bodies of animals killed in the pastures – they can be "lost" by hunters, hit by cars… – are destroyed, as highlighted in the article of the newspaper Noticias de Alava, which talks about the colonies of brown vultures in Álava.