Swarovski Optik has built an observatory in the Riet Vell nature reserve on the Ebro delta in Spain. By building this bird observation facility, Swarovski Optik is supporting the efforts of the Spanish bird conservation organizations’ umbrella group, the SEO/BirdLife, to maintain wetlands in the Ebro delta which are vitally important for local flocks. The hide, designed by Swarovski Optik with ornithological criteria at the forefront, is to be used mainly to observe in silence a wide variety of different birds that represent the biodiversity of the Ebro delta habitats.
Interesting bird species include the squacco heron (Ardeola ralloides), the little bittern (Ixobrychus minutus), the purple swamphen (Porphyrio porphyrio) and the whiskered tern (Chlidonias hybridus). Access to the observatory is from the rear. Unlike other similar sites designed more for observing the countryside, the birdlife here can be observed without any direct disturbance.

This project is another successful example of international collaboration in the conservation of threatened habitats. A nature conservancy group is working with a company that thinks holistically, a company that is not just concerned with product quality, but also quality of life and itself has an active nature conservation policy.