Why Spanish Firefighters Are Deploying Donkeys Alongside AI Cameras

Spain has expanded its wildfire prevention toolkit to include drones, satellite imagery and AI-equipped cameras, but in the hills of Catalonia the most effective tool is often a herd of donkeys. The Tivissa Donkey Firefighters, a nonprofit founded in 2020, uses rescued donkeys to graze dry brush and create natural firebreaks in terrain that is too steep or remote for machinery.

The initiative highlights a practical limit of current AI-based wildfire detection: even the best camera networks and computer vision models cannot remove the dry vegetation that fuels a blaze. Instead, they detect smoke or heat after a fire starts. The donkey program intervenes earlier by reducing available fuel.

Key facts

How the program works

The donkeys are released in herds into public and private forests where they feed on dry grass, shrubs and undergrowth. Unlike goats or sheep, donkeys are heavier and trample the vegetation they eat, which compacts the soil and reduces the amount of flammable material on the ground. The animals also move slowly but steadily, covering large areas over weeks.

Joan Cedó Sans, who founded the program, told Diari de Tarragona that the idea came after the 2013 Tivissa fire came close to his property. “I thought the animals could help clear the undergrowth and prevent fires,” he said. The herd started with three donkeys from a Swiss couple who needed to rehome them.

Where AI tools face limits

Spain’s wildfire detection infrastructure includes AI-powered cameras from companies such as Libelium and Delsat, as well as satellite analysis from the Copernicus program. These systems are effective at spotting smoke and tracking fire spread, but they cannot remove the dry fuel that accumulates in abandoned farmland and forests. Rural depopulation has left large areas unmanaged, making them more prone to large fires.

“The work donkeys do, neither goats nor sheep can do,” Cedó told CNN. He cited the animals’ weight and appetite for dry, tough vegetation that other grazers avoid.

Comparable initiatives in other regions

Donkey-based prevention is not unique to Catalonia. In Andalusia, the El Burrito Feliz association has deployed donkeys near Doñana National Park since 2014. In Galicia and the Basque Country, similar projects use horses and cattle. In 2022, Barcelona experimented with 200 sheep and goats to manage undergrowth in Collserola Natural Park, a model already tested in Portugal.

For ReviewArticle readers, the case is a reminder that AI deployment in wildfire prevention depends on ground-level logistics. Detection is only one part of the chain; fuel management remains a physical, labor-intensive task that sometimes calls for four-legged tools rather than silicon.

Source: Xataka – “España tiene cada vez más bosques y menos recursos para prevenir los incendios. Su solución: burros bomberos” (Carlos Prego, July 24, 2026) – https://www.xataka.com/magnet/pregunta-cual-nuestra-gran-arma-frente-a-incendios-espana-respuesta-se-abre-paso-burros-bomberos