Background The lesser spotted eagle (Aquila pomarina) is listed in Annex I of the Birds Directive. This raptor favours areas 100-900 metres above sea-level that contain a rich mosaic of woodland, meadows, fields, pastures, marshes and a well-developed network of watercourses. Its breeding range is restricted mostly to Europe (central, eastern and southeast Europe) and it has suffered a major decline in many countries, especially at the western and southern extent of its range. The European population size is estimated to be around 16 000 pairs, with up to 900 of these located in Slovakia. The Carpathian ecoregion is one of the most important strongholds of the species. Objectives The main objective of the APOMARINA_SK LIFE Nature project was to enhance the conservation status of the lesser spotted eagle in Slovakia. This aim would be achieved by establishing favourable conditions in the short term for stabilising the Slovak breeding population of the species in the Carpathian ecoregion. Productivity of the population was expected to increase and mortality to reduce. The project planned to: Establish direct conservation practices and management for 160 breeding pairs in SPAs; Eliminate insensitive forestry practices and create protective zones; Repair 40 unsafe nests and install another 30 artificial nests within established protective zones; Insulate 196 km of 22 kV electric power lines, which pose a danger to the raptor; Recover and release up to 20 injured, exhausted, starving birds or chicks that fall from their nests; Increase human and technical capacity to support conservation in the project area; and Raise public awareness via 240 educational presentations in schools and information sessions targeting 260 stakeholders and 75 hunters. Results The APOMARINA_SK project has improved the conservation status of Aquila pomarina in Slovakia by eliminating negative forestry activities and disturbance during breeding periods through the establishment of a system of ‘protective zones’ (covering the area of 15-20% of the national breeding population). These measures resulted in increased breeding success of the species in protective zones compared to unprotected areas. A total of 4 593 ha of breeding habitats were designated protective zones. These are home to 172 nests; 70 artificial nests were installed. The project also carried out ex-situ recovery support for around 1% of the breeding population in Slovakia, thus demonstrating the importance of creating a network of animal rescue facilities. During the project six individuals were recovered and released back to the wild. However, the number of pairs secured overall, 122, was lower than foreseen (160). An important conservation measure was to insulate electric pylons. A total of 57 581 ha of feeding habitats for the lesser spotted eagle were made safe from electrocution in two SPAs hosting around 10% of the national breeding population. The project also created technical reference documents for the long-term and systemic conservation of the species including habitats management guidelines and background documents for eight SPA management plans (20-26 % of national population) and for a national management plan. It also contributed to the draft recovery plan for the lesser spotted eagle in the EU. Furthermore, the project facilitated the establishment of an incentive framework for conservation of breeding and feeding habitats of the lesser spotted eagle through Rural Development Plan 2014 – 2020 (forest-environment scheme and agri-environment measures. The majority of the expected targets for raising public awareness were reached. Lesser spotted eagle is considered to be an umbrella species, i.e. species that is sensitive to changes in its habitats more than some other species and thus can be a significant indicator of quality of habitats and conservation status of other species. Thus efforts to conserve the species generate a very broad range of positive benefits for conservation of biodiversity. For example, the protective zones established by the project can contribute to climate change mitigation. Similarly, preserving forest protects soil from erosion, increases retention capacity of the landscape and minimises risks of rapid floods. Moreover, monitoring carried out by the project confirmed that the zones have a significant impact on the breeding success of the target species. The probability of successful breeding in nests inside a protection zone is 64.8%, higher than outside the protection zone (48.1%). Further information on the project can be found in the project's layman report and After-LIFE Conservation Plan (see "Read more" section).