Regulus regulus
Regulus regulus
The goldcrest is a species with a wide distribution across Eurasia (BirdLife International, 2024). In Europe it is present only in mountainous areas within the Mediterranean region, and is scarce in the south of the continent (Keller et al., 2020). In Spain, its populations are restricted to mountainous areas in the northern part of the peninsula (Pérez-Granados in SEO/BirdLife, 2022). The largest breeding populations are found in the Pyrenees, the Cantabrian Mountains, the Central System, and the northern part of the Iberian System. In addition, it is present in the Canary Islands (Lorenzo, 2007), but absent from the Balearic Islands, Ceuta, and Melilla.
In the province of Madrid, it is distributed along the mountain range, coinciding with areas occupied by mountain and subalpine Scots pine forests (Díaz et al., 1994).
In the national park, it is present in three population clusters: the Fuenfría area, the highlands of the Lozoya valley, and the pine forests in the northeastern sector around Reajo Alto and the Navafría pass.
It is a strictly forest-dwelling species that can inhabit a wide variety of woodlands, including coniferous forests, broadleaved forests, and mixed formations (López-Huertas in Martí and Del Moral, 2003; Prieta in SEO/BirdLife, 2012). In the Canary Islands, the species occupies laurel forests (laurisilva), fayal-brezal formations, and pine forests (Lorenzo, 2007).
In the national park, it is common in the highest-altitude forests, consistently occurring in extensive Scots pine stands.
At a global scale, the species is classified as Least Concern (LC; 2018). In Europe, it would also fall under the same category (LC; 2020). In Spain, it is considered Least Concern according to the 2021 Red List.
The Catalogue of Threatened Species of the Community of Madrid (1992) does not include this species under any threat category.
BirdLife International 2024. IUCN Red List for birds. https://datazone.birdlife.org.
Díaz, M., Martí, R., Gómez-Manzaneque, Á. y Sánchez, A. 1994. Atlas de las aves nidificantes en Madrid. Agencia de Medio Ambiente y SEO/BirdLife. Madrid.
Keller, V., Herrando, S., Voříšek, P., Franch, M., Kipson, M., Milanesi, P., Martí, D., Antón, M., Klvaňová, A., Kalyakin, M. V. Bauer, H. Gr y Foppen, R. P. B. 2020. European Breeding Bird Atlas 2: Distribution, Abundance and Change. European Birds Census Council y Lynx Edicions. Barcelona.
Lorenzo, J. A. (ed.) 2007. Atlas de las aves nidificantes en el archipiélago canario (1997-2003). Ministerio de Medio ambiente-Sociedad Española de Ornitología. Madrid.
Martens, J. y Päckert, M. 2015. Goldcrest (Regulus regulus). En del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D. A. y de Juana, E. (eds.): Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions. Barcelona.
SEO/BirdLife (Molina, B., Nebreda, A., Muñoz, A. R., Seoane, J., Real, R., Bustamante, J. y Del Moral, J. C., eds.). 2022. III Atlas de las aves en época de reproducción en España. SEO/BirdLife. Madrid.