This LAVA-LIFE project is a three-year conservation initiative aimed at urgently protecting critically endangered cave fauna in Madeira’s lava tube ecosystems. To this end, the project focuses on restoring and protecting the Cavalum I Cave, a very rare habitat type in the archipelago that faces threats including uncontrolled visitation, litter, invasive species, and habitat degradation. Therefore, the objectives (built around 4 key pillars) are:

1. Habitat restoration. Restore the subterranean habitat by reducing human impacts, controlling invasive species, and re-establishing natural ecological processes.
2. Protect the cavernicolous ecosystem. Develop conservation strategies and promote legal protection for the caves and their most threatened cave-dwelling species.
3. Monitorization. Monitor cave biodiversity and environmental conditions to better understand species ecology and assess the effectiveness of conservation actions.
4. Dissemination and sensitisation. Engage local communities through environmental education, citizen science, and the promotion of sustainable and responsible tourism.