Life PonDerat
Life PonDerat is a project co-financed by the European Union aimed at improving the conservation of species and habitats of the Ponziane archipelago.
In particular, we aim to protect some seabird species, such as the Scopoli's shearwater and the Yelkouan shearwater, severely threatened by rat predation on chicks, and the native habitats of the Ponziane archipelago, threatened by the presence of alien animal and plant species.
The LIFE programme is the EU’s funding instrument for the environment and climate action. The general objective of LIFE is to contribute to the implementation, updating and development of EU environmental and climate policy and legislation by co-financing projects with European added value.
Conservation actions:
- Eradication of invasive alien animals (alien predators such as rats, alien herbivores like feral goats) to restore insular habitats and communities and/or to improve breeding performances of native species.
- Implementing a strong biosecurity effort to prevent rat reinvasion.
- Eradication of invasive alien plants (Carpobrotus sp.pl.) on S. Stefano, Ventotene and Palmarola, also for improving the success of rat eradication.
- Fencing of key land plot on Zannone to exclude wild alien ungulates (mouflons) to restore native habitats (e.g. holm oak forest).
Among the expected results, there is the improvement of the conservation status of native species and habitats, as well as Benefits for thousands of migratory birds that annually stand on the Pontine islands during migration. Rat eradication will also lead relevant benefits to the inhabitants and visitors to the Pontine archipelago, by reducing health risks, damage to crops and costs for rodent control activities.