Background Leucorrhinia pectoralis, listed in Annexes II and IV of the Habitats Directive, and the Annex IV-listed common spadefoot toad (Pelobates fuscus), are threatened species in Europe. During the 20th century, the populations of the toads declined considerably, especially in the northern and western part of their distribution range. One of the main reasons for this significant decline was the destruction of their habitats, small freshwater bodies surrounded by natural or semi-natural communities. Despite its severe decline, large-scale habitat restoration for the yellow-spotted whiteface toad has not been carried out previously in Europe and only limited conservation work has been undertaken for the common spadefoot toad. Moreover, conservation attempts have often not succeeded in increasing reproductive and colonisation rates, underlining the need for species-specific conservation actions. Objectives The overall objective of the project is to secure the small and isolated populations of Leucorrhinia pectoralis and common spadefoot toad in the northern part of their distribution range in Estonia and Denmark and draw up conservation measures for successful population management of these species, applicable for a wider national and European scale, ensuring their long-term viability. Specific goals of the project are: To rescue the isolated populations of Leucorrhinia pectoralis from extinction in the Gribskov, Arresø, Kattehale Mose project sites and in central Jutland (Egtved) – four out of seven known localities of this species in Denmark; To rescue the populations of common spadefoot toad from extinction in the extreme northern part of its distribution range (Estonia) and in isolated sites in Denmark, in order to preserve the total gene pool of the species and avoid further range-reduction; To carry out large-scale habitat restoration, in order to preserve the populations of Leucorrhinia pectoralis and common spadefoot toad and restore the structure of meta-populations. To establish three reserve populations of the common spadefoot toad in the Danish project sites, providing high quality habitat conditions; To highlight the small freshwater bodies that are valuable habitats for the target species and also for many other rare and threatened aquatic and semi-aquatic species; To raise awareness of nature conservation staff, site managers, teachers, pupils and local inhabitants about the target species, by involving them in the species protection and habitat management activities; To establish an international co-operation network between experts and nature managers, in order to combine the knowledge and practical experiences and disseminate the results of the project.