In Switzerland, capercaillie populations have been declining since the end of the 1940s. The area of distribution of this species is likewise shrinking. As a result, the sub-populations that remain are becoming increasingly isolated from each other and are more and more likely to disappear.
In the early 1970s, measures to conserve the capercaillie were adopted by individual foresters and biologists. Since 1988, these activities have been coordinated by the Swiss Ornithological Institute at Sempach, on behalf of the Swiss Agency for the Environment, Forest and Landscape (SAEFL). However, the population survey carried out in 2001 indicated that the measures taken so far were not sufficient to stop the decline of the capercaillie.