Castilla

Prickly pears are at risk of becoming extinct because no one wants to be a prickly pear anymore. Castilla y León wants to remedy it

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His image is iconic, unmistakable. Capes, doublets, ribbons and patches, with guitars and bands in their hands and setting the rhythm around the campuses. The university prickly pears are part of the cultural heritage of Spain and as such the Junta de Castilla y León wants to protect them, which just declared tradition an Asset of Cultural Interest (BIC) of an intangible nature. The measure comes at a particularly delicate moment: with the prickly pear Vivabut stalked by “threats”. What has happened? That Castilla y León has just declared the university prickly pears Asset of Intangible Cultural Interest. In reality, the regional Government Council made the decision several weeks ago, November 27but it had not been consolidated until now, with your publication in it Official State Gazette. Why is it important? To begin with, because it represents public recognition of a cultural tradition that dates back centuries and will now have a new institutional veneer. Among other issues, the BIC label should make it easier for groups to promote themselves. The declaration as immaterial BIC also places the focus on another fundamental issue: the state of health of university students in Spain. At the end of the day, the Junta de Castilla y León itself recognize that one of the objectives of the measure is to “protect the uniqueness” of a tradition that, he insists, remains “alive” and “integrated” on the campuses. Not everyone shares his optimism. From Culture they warned not long ago that the prickly pears face “threats”. Why declare it BIC? The Castilian Government is clear about it: claims “the roots” of the prickly pear in the region and remembers that the tradition arose in the heat of some of its first universities, such as that of Palencia, Salamanca either Valladolidwhich trace their origins to the 13th century. “This has allowed the tradition to take deep roots in the region from an early date,” collects the BOE announcementin which he presents Salamanca as the “cradle of the prickly pear.” Since then the groups have gone through multiple ups and downs. The prickly pears started among the humblest university students of the late Middle Ages, young people who played in exchange for food or a few coins, and remained active throughout the following centuries. In the 19th century they were on the brink of disappearance, but they gained renewed momentum thanks to the Romantic movement. The Civil War threatened its survival again, but the tradition was reinforced during the 40s, 50s and especially between the 60s and 70s, when Spain opened up to tourism that found in those young people who dedicated themselves to singing dressed in capes and ribbons a “picturesque symbol of Spanish student folklore.” Already in the 1980s and 1990s the first female groups were consolidated. And how are they now? The Board assures that “the presence of university prickly pears” covers the entire region, giving shape to “a living mosaic.” “Castilla y León is home to between 20 and 30 active or recently active university tunas, distributed throughout all its provinces,” celebrate the Castilian-Leonese Government before specifying that this estimate includes all types of groups, male, female and those known as fortiesformed by ancient tunos. How are your health? It depends on the source we consult. In June, Ernest Urtasun’s department published a report in which, after emphasizing the cultural and historical interest of these groups, he issues a warning to sailors: “The university prickly pear faces risks and threats derived above all from the aging of its members due to the lack of incorporation of new members in the existing groups, which results in a decrease in their number.” The comment is actually included in an official file which aims to declare the prickly pear “representative manifestation of the Intangible Cultural Heritage.” What are the prickly pears like today? That’s the key. The Country concrete that of the 150 musicians that make up the Law tuna of the Complutense University, only 15 are under 30 years old. “In the end it is a tradition that is championed by people who are not university students,” recognize one of its members. Another veteran of a prickly pear in Valladolid admits that “many fewer performances” are carried out than before. “There is no longer so much influx of people who want to join, whether due to musical tastes, the loss of economic support, fashions or the appearance of other groups, such as charangas,” reflect. “What I am clear about is that tuna continues to be a way to meet with friends who share a taste for music, creating bonds that can last a lifetime.” The situation also varies from one area to another in Spain. four years ago The Galician Post explained that in Santiago de Compostela, another of the main university cities in the country, only one prickly pear remained intact (there are other initiatives), that of Law. Of course, based on musicians who for the most part were no longer linked to the university. The Galician newspaper pointed out, however, that the trend was somewhat different in the southern half of the peninsula. Images | University of Salamanca 1 and 2 and University of Seville In Xataka | The ringing of Spanish bells is a language in itself. And now also a World Heritage Site

In Castilla y León, a baby of an eagle that became extinct in the 19th century has been born. What is not clear is that it is good news

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The skies of Castilla y León have left a historical imagesomething that had not been seen for a long time in our country: a native baby eagle flying over the territory. The specimen of this bird of prey was born on Spanish soil a few months ago, early mayand has already taken flight, as has just been said reveal The Confidential. Something like this hadn’t happened in a long time. That a species that was supposed to be extinct in the Iberian Peninsula since the 19th century manages to recover ground is usually positive news, but in the case of the eagle it comes clouded by something else: controversy. There are those who believe that its reintroduction in Spain is a “historical milestone”. And who thinks it is a blunder. First of all, what is the eagle? A bird of prey that stands out for its enormous size. With its wings extended it can reach 2.4m wingspan and usually measures between 80 and 90 cm long. His name appeared in a list published years ago by the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge (MITECO) with extinct species susceptible to be reintroduced. After all, there are those who consider that the eagle, which continues to live in Scandinavian countries, it disappeared from the peninsula among the 19th and 20th centuries due to the degradation of their environment. How did you return to Spain? Thanks to Proyecto Pigargo, a plan released in 2021 with the approval of the Principality of Asturias, the Cantabrian Government and above all the support of MITECO, which invested more than 300,000 euros in the recovery of the species. In August of that same year was announced the arrival of almost a dozen young specimens born in Norway that were introduced in Pimiango, in the municipality of Ribadedeva (Asturias). As time went by, more birds were released until add 25. Of them survived about 17almost all (12) paired. And have they bred yet? Yes. The news I advanced it on September 18 GREFA, the group that has promoted the reintroduction of the species on the peninsula. In a statement The group explains that the calf was born in May in the north of Castilla y León, in an area that had been identified as “optimal for the species”, although GREFA has not specified the exact location “to avoid any disturbance.” “The birth of the first European eagle chick in Spain represents a historic moment for nature conservation in our country,” celebrate the association before highlighting the collaboration of the Junta de Castilla y León and the “technical support” of both MITECO and agents of the autonomous community. Perfect, right? It depends on who you ask. If we listen GREFA is “a historic milestone for biodiversity in Spain and Europe”, the result of a well-studied plan, which accumulates hours of work and has achieved the support of IUCNthe International Union for Conservation of Nature. The group insists that it is the first breeding after “the extinction” of the species in Spain and highlights “the success” of having achieved a chick in a few years with 25 specimens released. “An exciting and motivating result that allows us to hope for more views next season,” celebrate. Don’t everyone think that way? No. The launch of the Pigargo Project may have generated expectations at the time, but it certainly did not achieve something equally or even more important: scientific consensus. Already in 2021 there were voices that warned that releasing copies in Spain meant “a bad idea”. In fact, that was the key message of an article published in The Conversation by three experts from the University of Oviedo in which they pointed out the weak points of the program and questioned whether the eagle is really a native and extinct species. The controversy escalated to such a point that the central government and the autonomies that had initially endorsed the project they decided to back out after just two years. What arguments do they use? GREFA recalls that the releases of eagles that began four years ago in Asturias had the endorsement of the IUCN and the species was included in the list of extinct fauna prepared with the endorsement of the committee of scientists that advises the ministry. Not only that. The group defends that the birth of the first baby in the wild in Castilla y León a few months ago proves the adaptation to the environment of a bird of prey that, argues“contributes to keeping under control” other species that can damage ecosystems, such as carp. “Thanks to its scavenging habits, the European sea eagle plays an important role as a ‘health police’, helping to control the spread of diseases by effectively removing animal corpses from the environment,” they point out from the entity. In fact, GREFA trusts that the birth of the first chick marks a turning point in the program and will allow it to recover the institutional support that it has been losing in recent years. “We hope that this historic event encourages strengthening or resuming support for the project, especially in the case of the Principality of Asturias and the Government of Cantabria, whose initial collaboration was fundamental although they later withdrew it,” Ernesto Álvarez slidesits president. And what do the critics say? They go to the root of the approach and question its most basic premise: that it has really been proven that the eagle is a species native to the peninsula. “To consider a species as extinct, the evidence must be irrefutable. In the case of the eagle that does not happen. The documentation that has been used for its classification as an extinct species is reduced to some reports on archaeological remains, several citations of solitary specimens and dubious signs of breeding,” he points out. the article published in The Conversation. One of them, Germán Orizaola, Ramón y Cajal researcher in Zoology, warned in 2023 in statements to The Country of the risk that the initiative may pose … Read more

that Castilla y León and León and Galicia pay him

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In the middle of August, with the return or start of the holidays for many, Renfe encountered an unexpected problem, the icing on a summer of delays and cancellations: the fires. Although these caused delays throughout Spain, the Zamoran and Galician fires They brought together the greatest delays to the company. In fact, For more than a week Renfe met the obligation to Cancel or delay trains that cover the link between Madrid and Galicia. The company has many hopes in this corridor since it is the only company that, for technical reasonscan operate in it and also has achieved a spectacular increase In the number of travelers. During those days of August Renfe ordered buses in the first hours But then he chose to change the dates of the tickets or offer a completely free cancellation. At the same time, The airlines took the opportunity to raise prices of the tickets thanks to the traveler transfer. Now, Renfe is studying to denounce Castilla y León and Galicia for the economic damage suffered. The first complaint “Renfe is studying for the first time a claim of patrimonial responsibility against Castilla y León and Galicia. Because it is not a receipt that Renfe and Adif had to lose three million euros during those nine days. There are some administrations that have to dimension a prevention and fire extinction service and have not done so and the consequences are paid by Renfe, and on top service” The words are from Oscar Puente, Minister of Transportation, in an intervention in the Congress of Deputies where he has had to give the face of the Popular Party for “The Railway Chaos” this summer. The statement has been collected by Europa Press. Bridge confirms that Renfe and Adif (The company that manages the roads) understands that, having had proper prevention, the service could have been provided normally. According to Puente, delays cannot be attrmed to either of the two companies because the infrastructure did not suffer any damage. However, it was necessary to cut electricity because emergency services understood that there was a risk if they sprayed the nearby areas with water. In his speech, Puente also assured that it was impossible to establish a bus service because each train transfers 500 people and that would mean mobilizing 10 bus buses. It is the same answer as The company already gave Xataka A month ago. However, the threat of a complaint to the Galician and Castellanoleonese institutions coincides with the confirmation that, with the latest changes in claims for delays, Up to two million passengers They have run out of compensation for arrivals that until a few months ago would have been compensated with the return of the ticket, totally or partially. Photo | Ume and Phil Richards In Xataka | If something has taught us summer is that Spain does not need more trains. Simply need to work

The maps that explain why Castilla y León have become the “zero zone” of forest fires

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The fires are a pressing problem every summer, but in the midst of the heat wave that shakes peninsular Spain, the problems derived from fire grow Without giving us breath. One of the areas most affected by fires is the northwest quadrant of the peninsula. Something that we can verify in a series of maps that show us the present and future risk of fire. Fire risk, from satellites. The Risk Management Service of Copernicus, the land observation system of the European Union, shows us on a map the Areas with greater risk of forest fires In the continent. The map shows the FWI fire meteorological risk index (Fire Weather Index), distinguishing areas with low, moderate, high, very high and very extreme risk. The map allows us to visualize the risk we face: a good part of the Northern Plateau, in addition to areas of the Cantabrian, Pyrenees, Galicia and other areas present in index greater than 2.5, which implies very extreme risk. Southern Europe, and beyond. The map covers not only peninsular and Balearic Islands, but also the rest of Europe and surrounding areas. In fact we can see in it that the very extreme risk situation extends not only to northern Portugal, also to most of the center and south of France. Other areas in this situation can be found in the Balkans, Greece, Romania, Bulgaria, Slovenia, Austria and Hungary. Important anomalies are also indicated in Nordic countries, such as Sweden, Norway and Finland. A problem that will go worse. The Copernicus map covers this week together, from day 11 to 17. However we can resort to other maps that allow us to see the evolution of risk during the next few days, Fire risk maps of the State Meteorology Agency (Aemet). What these maps show us is not an invitation to optimism. Aemet fire risk forecast evolution on August 14, 15 and 16. State Meteorology Agency. The stain extends. The extreme risk today focuses on Andalusia, Extremadura, the west of Castilla y León, and the Pyrenees, as well as areas located in Galicia, Basque Country, Murcia and other communities. However, tomorrow this area under extreme risk will expand both in the peninsular northwest and in Extremadura, the Basque Country and Murcia. On Friday and Saturday the “red spot” will continue to grow. On Saturday, only specific areas on the coast and in mountainous areas will be fought from the very high or extreme risk. The devastation of a fire. In addition to risk maps, Copernicus also allows us to visualize the ravages that active fires have already caused. Example of this It is the fire of El Arenal, in Ávila, which has already affected almost 1,800 hectares of surface. In Xataka | In the middle of the fire, there is something that Spanish firefighters are very aware: the 30-30 rule Image | Copernicus / Aemet

Delete the stops in Castilla y León

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215 minutes. That is the time that it should take a high -speed train to travel the distance that Vigo separates from Madrid from this month of March. It is not a figure that we have said randomly. It is the promise in which Oscar Puente reaffirmed At the beginning of this 2025, since since the arrival of the Avril there was talk of connect Madrid and Vigo In just over three and a half hours. The same day in which it also took advantage of confirming that the number of places offered would be expanded by 125%. The problem is that those 215 minutes remain, right now, a promise. What are real are the delays and breaches that have accumulated since In May 2024 The first trains will arrive at the railway line. The first day, the train that promised to reduce travel time in 15 minutes was exceeded half an hour above the scheduled. The second day, andl delay went above two hours. Then, the Vigo-Madrid had to be done in four hours, with the promise that time should be filed over time. It improved … little. In August last year Just one in five trains that covered the journey arrived at the expected hour. And we are already in March 2025 and there is no trace of those 215 minutes desired. So Abel Caballero, mayor of Vigo, has had a proposal: why not eliminate stops in Castilla-León? A direct Madrid-Vigo In case Spain was devoid of storms in recent days, Caballero decided to generate his own on the afternoon of March 19. That day a meeting had been organized between Mayor Gallego and Álvaro Fernández Heredia, new director of Renfe. After the same, Caballero exposed what had been talked there. The mayor of Vigo said that he had presented some alternatives to Fernández Heredia to reduce until three hours and 45 minutes the time that Madrid separates from his city. The proposal was clear: Eliminate stops in Castilla-León. He did not explain which but he said the following: “The current travel time on one of the tours is very elongated by an excessive number of stops in the area of ​​Castilla y León, a area already close to Madrid that currently has a very important coverage of trains that come from all over the north and the rest of Galicia on high -speed paths” The words were collected by the local medium Atlantic.net. The proposal, according to Caballero, had had “very good reception” and Fernández Heredia would have been “very receptive.” And, of course, the winds unleashed the storm. Renfe has left the gentlemanensuring that the stops that are currently in Segovia, Medina del Campo, Zamora and Sanabria High Speed ​​will not be suppressed. Before, Alfonso Fernández Mañueco, president of Castilla-León, had already shown his anger crossing the intentions of “intolerable”, they collect in The Spanish. The crossing of statements, of course, has been felt throughout the day of March 20, with cross messages between members of the PSOE (to which Caballero belongs) and the PP (to which Mañueco belongs) both Galicians and Castellanoleonese, as well as the different political parties that give voice to all the affected provinces, such as Zamora or Segovia. The conflict, however, exemplifies the wounds that have opened with the expansion of high speed east of the country. One of those wounds is found in Zamora. Already in May 2024 they collected in Vigo lighthouse that a possibility that was on the table to reduce the times was to skip the stop in the city “that will have 12 trains a day per sense despite having 60,000 inhabitants.” Another key places that lengthens the trip in Madrid-Vigo is its forced passage by Santiago de Compostela. No direct connection between Vigo and Orense (just over an hour by car) is obliged to the high -speed train to deviate 70 kilometers to cover the entire journey and reach Vigo. This alternative has been on the table since 2001 but Bridge avoided last year Give a concrete date of when the project could be ready or, at least, if at any time it would be approved. Although Madrid-Vigo has focused all eyes for obvious reasons, confrontations on the occasion of high speed are common in Spain. In the Basque Country, it is not only that high speed arrives with decades of delayat this time there is a strong confrontation to choose the path that must connect the “and Basque” with high speed from Pamplona. Everything seemed aimed with a step by Vitoria but a Alternative by the Gipuzkoan town of Ezkio/ITSASOby the Sierra de Aralar. The connection in AVE Madrid-Lisboa has also been disputed. Among the latest discussionsthat of the Ministry of Transport, led by bridge, With the Government of Castilla-La Mancha and the municipalities of Toledo and Talavera de la Reina, in relation to whether a new train station should be built in the first case or if the tracks should be buried in the second. But these have been the last fringes because the cities of Badajoz and Salamanca They have been faced for years in a discussion that has recently been a folder when Bridge confirmedagain, that the journey between Madrid and Lisbon would pass through the city of Extremadura. Photo | Namor88 and Pedro Vicente Seoane Prado In Xataka | Spain has its own Express Orient and is an ode to luxury: the exclusive, nineteenth and very expensive transcontábrico

break with Castilla and become autonomy

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Thousands of people, 13,000, according to Police calculationsthey left yesterday to the streets of León to demand a better future for their province. So far not surprising. The funny thing is that at least a significant part of the attendees imagines that future in a different administrative scenario: in a lion separated from Castilla, which has ceased to be province to become the 18th autonomy of Spain and no longer looks at Valladolid as its de facto regional capital. That there is one Autonomist drive In the province it is not a novelty. Years ago that their defenders cry because the region courts its administrative ties with Castilla. Yesterday’s march served however for something else: show to what extent that feeling has become strong and lets hear in the province. It was about showing muscle. And he did. A figure: 13,000. That is the number of people who mobilized yesterday in León to demand a better future for the province: 13,000. At least According to the accounts Police officers, because there are those who speak of several tens of thousands And the organizers of the march point to many more, around 50,000. It is good for one or another figure, the undeniable thing is that thousands of lions took the streets of their capital between flags, banners and songs to wrap a march called by The main unions and backed by 60 groups to defend the future of the region. Your motto: “More solutions and less stories.” Click on the image to go to Tweet. What did they claim? “Definitive Solutions” For León at the economic and sociodemographic level. But not just that. Like the march held just a five years, The 16-F of 2020yesterday’s demonstration served to show the discontent of the Leon with the situation in their province; But also for something else: to make clear to what extent the idea has gained strength that the future of León must go through conquering greater administrative autonomy against Castile. León News covered the act and He recounts that during the manifestation, shouts of “Autonomy of the country” were heard and banners were shown in favor of autonomy. Also flags that cried out for “autonomy 18” or “Lexit”label that (in a wink to Brexit) has made fortune thanks to the combination of “León” and “Exit”. The idea of ​​autonomy was so present during the march that today They are not few The media regional ones that dedicate its headlines. Why is it important? Because yesterday’s march acts in a certain way of thermometer, one that helps to understand the discomfort in the province with its current situation and the interest raised by the lexit as an exit. Both when it comes to figures (between 13,000 and 50,000 attendees in a city of 122,200 neighbors) as social support. Although over the last months it has been clear that Not all Come with good eyes with Castilla, yesterday’s day shows, at least, that León believes that he must fight for “The future that deserves”. “More solutions, less stories”. In the head From the demonstration at his exit from San Marcos lucia a banner that prayed “León + Solutions – Tales”, a message focused on the struggle for better infrastructure, reindustrialization, employment and public services. And it is undeniable that the message fell. The appointment attended representatives of most parties with weight in the province, The mayor of Leónthe president of the Diputación and members of social groups. Click on the image to go to Tweet. Beyond the streets. Yesterday was not the first sample to what extent the Lexit has penetrated in the region. TO late 2019 Several parties joined their votes to claim the autonomy of the Leonese region and become the 18 Spanish community. The idea: separate from Castilla with Salamanca and Zamora. After the pandemic the drivers of that measure organized An act To remember that they did not give up and last year, in a new step in that same direction, PSOE and UPL added their votes to claim autonomy in the Diputación de León. Not everyone thinks the same, of course. In 2024 the PP already marked distances with the autonomist motion and advocated looking for a “Useful Leonism”. “The community has been failed”. Proof of how living the claim is that the mayor of León, the socialist José Antonio Diez, recently presented a legal report to guarantee the Lexit. “We are clear about the mandate and will of the Leon, who have opted for their own community, and the Constitution supports us through the article,” José Antonio Diez claimsof the PSOE, who defends that “the current community has been failed.” “We never wanted to be part of Castilla.” One question: Why? Because the province of León lidia with worrying data at the demographic and economic level. Four years ago I added 451,700 inhabitants, 13% less than in the mid -90s and 2024 data They suggest that it would be below 448,000. In a scenario marked by the urban exodus and the bleeding of the Mining municipalitiesLeón has also become one of the territories that More population loses from all over the country. And his business balance is not especially good either. The latest data released over 2024 show that it lost 144 contributing businesses In just one year, which is equivalent to the more or less 50% of closures In autonomy. Interesting yes, new no. The discomfort of the Leon is not new. A five years ago, the 18F of 2020, already encouraged Another mass march During which shouts of “autonomy, Leonese country” could already be heard, in tune with those who launched yesterday. “The Leonese go out to demonstrate, basically to change the territorial framework that impoverishes us,” He explained yesterday A UPL attorney. If something showed the day is that it is not the only one who thinks so. Image | CCOO CASTILLA Y LEÓN In Xataka | Castilla-La Mancha is about to shrink 2,000 hectares in favor of Aragon. All for a … Read more

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