Until the end of the 19th century, the bearded vulture was a widespread species throughout the Spanish mountain ranges.
The massive use of poison and indiscriminate hunting brought this bird of prey to the brink of extinction in the 20th century, so that in the early 1980s it was estimated that only 20 to 30 pairs remained in the Pyrenees, and a couple of pairs in Cazorla.
The last specimen in this mountain range disappeared in 1988.

The first detailed census took place in 1988 and showed a total of 30 pairs in the Spanish Pyrenees.
In the rest of the European Union there were only residual pairs in the French Pyrenees, Corsica, Crete and the Balkan peninsula.

Since 1980, conservation actions carried out in Navarra, Aragón and Catalonia have allowed the recovery of the population in the Pyrenean mountains.
However, the low recolonizing capacity of the species has kept it relegated to this territory, which implies an important risk for the future of the species.

In order to guarantee its long-term conservation, two reintroduction projects were initiated during the 2000s in its former range: Cazorla and Picos de Europa.

In 2022, 200 pairs inhabit the Pyrenees (Spain, France and Andorra).
In addition, there are 5 pairs in the Sierra de Cazorla, 3 in Picos de Europa, 1 in the Sierra Vasco-Navarre and 2 in the Sistema Ibérico.

Finally, in 2022 the Foundation has started its reintroduction in the Sierra de Gredos and in the Aragonese Maestrazgo.
The aim is to recover the species in the main mountain massifs of the country.