Santa Cruz de Tenerife Faces Backlash Over Tree Pruning During Bird Breeding Season

Urban tree management in Santa Cruz de Tenerife is under fire following recent maintenance in the Miramar neighborhood. The environmental group Los Árboles Hablan claims that work on Canary Island date palms along Francisco García Talavera Street violated bird protection laws by taking place during the peak breeding season.

The issue began last Monday when workers removed a large amount of foliage. A local resident alerted the group after witnessing a nest being displaced and later found abandoned in a hedge far from its original site. The situation became more serious when a dead juvenile bird was discovered near the trees where the work had been carried out.

These actions appear to conflict with both national and European Union regulations, which strictly forbid disturbing nests or destroying habitats during nesting periods. Spanish environmental law requires local governments to follow specific protocols to ensure that municipal gardening does not harm local wildlife.

In response, the association has called on the Santa Cruz City Council to immediately halt all pruning until the breeding season ends. They are urging the council to better balance the maintenance of public spaces with wildlife protection laws, warning that ignoring these biological cycles could lead to environmental offenses.