ZPE
Published 8 November 2026, 22:44
ZPE — Zona de Proteção Especial (special protection area for birds)
The other half of the Rede Natura 2000 network: an area set up for wild birds and the places where they feed, nest and spend the winter. It differs from a ZEC in its legal basis: a ZEC is created under the Habitats Directive, a ZPE under the Birds Directive. On the ground they often cover the same area and are frequently given a common regime in a single decree.
Where you come across it. A plot or house on a river estuary, a lagoon, by a reservoir or on a floodplain — that is where ZPEs are most common.
ZPE status does not mean a place is a nature reserve you cannot enter: the bans are listed one by one in the decree for the particular area, and everything else remains allowed.
Official website: icnf.pt