The first complete skeleton of a tapir in Europe has been found in Girona at the archaeological dig, El Camp del Ninots. The fossil dates from 3.5 million years ago. Tapirs disappeared from Europe some 1.3 million years later at the start of the Pleistocene probably due to climate change. El País
Following the news of the creation of a third patrol for the Fundación Oso Pardo which will be financed by the Obra Social Caja Madrid to further and coordinate the work of the existing two, today comes news of a new investigation into the conservation management of the Cantabrian brown bear. The project will be headed by the environmental department of the Asturian government and the Doñana Research Centre of the Spanish National Research Council (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas). Yesterday, no lesser personages than Miguel Delibes de Castro, respected Spanish biologist and mammal expert, and one of the leading European brown bear experts, Jon Swenson, met in Asturias for a working meeting to oversee the start of the investigation which consists of three phases. First is a study of the demographic evolution of the Cantabrian bears in order to diagnose their current conservation status, followed by the identification of possible communication corridors and the analysis of damages to agriculture and livestock. Delibes and Swenson finished their meeting with José Félix García Gaona, head of the Asturian Biodiversity and Countryside Department (Biodiversidad y Paisaje) with a visit to Proaza from where the Asturian Bear Foundation (Fundación Oso Asturias) is sponsoring a doctoral thesis by Andrés Ordiz Fernández, titled “Análisis de patrones de movimiento y actividad del oso pardo en Europa. Aplicación a la conservación de pequeñas poblaciones amenazadas. El caso de la Cordillera Cantábrica.” (Analysis of patterns of movement and activity of the brown bear in Europe. Application of the conservation of small, endangered populations. The case of the Cantabrian mountains.)
Doubtless, they also visited Paca and Tola with their new, hopeful mate Furaco.
News from lne.es
Follow the Cantabrian brown bear on IberiaNature forum
Sad news. A group of vandals have disturbed one of the four “nests” of peregrine falcons in Barcelona. They climbed up one the chimney stacks in Poble Nou where the pair where raising three chicks, and in their panic the chicks flew before they were fully fledged. Two have been rescued but one was found dead in the street. The two rescued chicks are to taken to a nest on Montjuic and introduced to the pair there through hacking. May the full force of the law fall on these idiots. El Periódico
See also Peregrines of the Sagrada Familia
I enjoyed reading this piece on the Tramontana wind written for Iberianature by Francis Barrett as part of his Guide to the Ampurdan. In Spain, Tramontana refers to the wind which blows NE-SW across the Ampurdan region of Girona. (Painting above by Fransesc Gimeno: An Ampordan village. Note Montgrí in the background - 1918)
…. the strong Tramontana wind is a fairly regular feature of the region in all seasons except summer. This variant of the French Mistral wind blows NE-SW across the landscape for 3-12 days at a time, and can be bitter when the Pyranees are covered in snow and ice. Taking shelter indoors avoids the icy blast, but not the shrill moan as the wind swirls around corners and down chimneys to make fireplace flames flicker and die. The English proverb “red sky at night - shepherds’ delight; red sky in the morning - sailors’ warning” is reversed in the Ampurdan; glorious sunsets signal the imminence of the Tramontana, whereas beautiful dawns are the norm.
The influence of the Tramontana can be seen in the rural landscape and architecture, with walls and lines of beech (sic) trees designed as windbreaks, and open arches at the top level of old farmhouses to dry stored crops. The people of the region tend to live in harmony with the local climactic vagaries, but the Tramontana affects their behaviour most of all, making the children giddy on the first day and rendering everybody depressed when it blows for a week. After 10 days of Tramontana, the murder rate goes up and both people and animals have been known to commit suicide. Catalonia celebrates eight traditional winds, but only the people of the Ampurdan, or Empordanesos, are said to be tocats per al vent – “touched”or mentally affected by the wind.
Elsewhere is this excellent piece by Ian Gibson in the New York Times on the tramontana wind from his Shameful Life of Salvador Dalí
Around 1881 Gal Dali moved to Barcelona. According to family tradition the main reason for this decision was that he found he could no longer stand the tramuntana. This fierce north wind, as integral a part of life in the Upper Emporda as the rain in London, has to be experienced to be believed. Dry and bitterly cold in winter, it roars and blasts its way down through the passes of the Pyrenees (hence tramuntana, `from across the mountains’), sweeping the sky clear of clouds, and, hitting the Emporda, forces the cypresses almost to their knees, smashes flowerpots, snaps television masts and coats the cliffs of Cape Creus white with salt lashed from the waves. The tramuntana blows regularly at over 130 kilometres an hour, and has been known to overturn railway carriages and hurl cars into the sea. At Port-Bou, on the French frontier, it can be so violent that the paramilitary Civil Guard used to enjoy a special dispensation allowing them to climb to their quarters upstairs on all-fours: a position that would normally have been considered undignified in the extreme for a force of law and order famed for its machismo.
Gibson continues:
The tramuntana can affect the emotions as brutally as it does the sea and countryside, and is a constant topic of conversation in this region. The Empordanese are known for their intransigence (the Dalis were no exception), and one authority on the area has attributed this to their having to push constantly against the wind. Anyone a little dotty in these parts, or with a tendency suddenly to flare up, is likely to be labelled atramuntanat (`touched by the tramuntana’), and in the past crimes passionnels committed when the wind was raging were half-way to being condoned. As for depressives, they can be driven to absolute despair by a prolonged bout of the wind–and the bouts may last for eight or ten days, especially in winter. It is even alleged that the tramuntana is responsible for suicides, especially in Cadaques. The protagonist of Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s short story, `Tramuntana’, is such a victim. It may well be that Gal Dali feared that, if he stayed on in the village, he was in mortal danger.
Notes:
The Fundación Gypaetus is organising a series of guided to the lammergeyer breeding centre in Cazorla. The centre is home to 18 adult birds and one chick born in March. The visits are open between 15th May and 30th September. Tel. 953 720923 or read in La Fundación Gypaetus
From the Birds in Spain blogspot
“During the last days of April and May to date, what has been considered to be an unprecedented invasion of Red-footed Falcons Falco vespertinus has been recorded in Spain. With groups peaking tens of birds altogether in Girona and Mallorca, largest numbers have been gathered in East Spain as expected for this rather eastern migrant.”
See also the thread on forum on this
A male Capercaillie (in Spanish, urogallo), named Manso by villagers in Asturias, has returned to the area where last year he was desparately looking for females of his own species. Having travelled to the mountains around the village of Lillo in León, he’s back equipped with a radio collar. His progress is being monitored and if relocating him to a more suitable area doesn’t work, then he’ll be moved the a new breeding centre not far away in Sobrescobio. Biologists say his behaviour is typical of a species heading towards extinction. From elcomerciodigital.com
Photo from lavanguardia.es
Read more on Capercaillie in Spain on the forum.
I’m pleased to announce the first iberianatureforum sponsored wildlife project. The plan is to support the conservation of the endangered Southern Midwife toad (Alytes dickhilleni - above photo from sierradebaza.org.) The idea has arisen from a visit members of the forum made last month to the Zoo Botanico in Jerez de la Frontera, the best in Spain in terms of conservation of local species, and has been organised by joint forum-owner Clive whom I quote here.
- The zoo is in the process or requesting permission to collect from the wild an endangered species of amphibian for captive breeding and release and we (The Forum) can help out with the project.
- Alytes dickhilleni is a species of Midwife toad that only occurs in the Southern part of Spain hence its common name of “Betic / Southern Midwife Toad” after the “Baetic” mountain range in the Andalucía. (In Spanish it’s a Sapo partero bético).
- The project needs some large glass terrariums (5) in order to house and breed the toads that cost (the terrariums) about 150 Euros each. In return for our help the Iberianature Forum will be named as sponsors and our collaboration will be mentioned in all the results returned from the project. (We will be famous at last!)
- The community of iberianature has come a long way over the last year or so and we have all contributed to an excellent resource about the natural world of Iberia but this, for me at least, is an excellent opportunity for us as a group to help in a practical way some people who are really working hard to protect their environment.
If you like iberianature and you would like to contribute to this project please send me or Clive an email.
See on the forum
Photo El País
Another update on brown bears in the Pyrenees. The population of bears in the range has “stabilised” at 20 individuals, of which only two (old) males and one cub belong to the autocthonous “group of Pyrenean bears. The remaining bears are those introduced from Eastern Europe in 1996, 1997 and 2006, or are cubs of these animals.
In Catalonia, in the last year at least 12 bears have been recorded passing some time here, and as some of these are now cubs, we can now begin to talk about a second generation growing up since the reintroductions began. A sign of the increased activity of bears is the first recording of a bear In the Vall d’Arán for a number of years. Watch the video of a female bear being followed by a male here. Both have recently awoken from hibernation.
The latest DNA evidence suggests that the genetic difference between Spanish bears and those from the rest of Europe is small, and therefore there should be no reason to oppose transfers from other areas on biological grounds. See Wikipedia for more on links on this. In 2007, brown bears in the Catalan Pyrenees killed 20 sheep, 1 cow and 1 horse, which the Catalan Government compensated to a tune of 6,640 euros. A small price to pay. See pirineos.com
See also Pyrenean bear news
Wil Luiif has sent me these remarkable photos of a wolf in the Sierra de la Culebra he took this April.
Wil organises English-language trips to watch wolves in Zamora, possibly in the future in collaboration with iberianature. More here at Aragonnatuur or send him an email. Don’t be put off by the Dutch, his English is better than mine. More on Iberian wolves and have a look at the archive on wolves
The Fundación para la Conservación del Quebrantahuesos is organising a work camp in July with volunteers in the village of Bejes, Cantabria. The camp is centred on helping the maintenance of traditional livestock farming in the Picos de Europa as an essential element in the conservation of the biodiversity and the recovery of the lammergeyer in the Cantabrian Mountains. Volunteers will help in sheering the sheep which are taken up to the high pastures in the summer. The camp involves three days working with the shepherds, two days learning about the fauna and flora of the Picos and one day’s rest. Knowledge of some Spanish is highly recommendable. More information from FCQ.
Come falcon watching at the Sagrada Família, Barcelona this Sunday 18th May. Plaça Sagrada Família with Thalassia, Galanthus and Iberianature. 10:00-13:00.
This article from the latest Environment and History makes fascinating reading.
Spanish Wood Pasture: Origin and Durability of an Historical Wooded Landscape in Mediterranean Europe
Spanish dehesas, the most extensive wood pastures in Mediterranean Europe, are a vivid example for demonstrating that the impact of rural communities on forests has not always been a bad thing. Environmental history is vital for understanding this cultural landscape. This article first analyses the origin of the dehesa. The border logic and the medieval Reconquest are elements that undoubtedly played a decisive part in its genesis; but, for the significance of Roman influence in Spain, it is necessary to consider the question of the possible existence of dehesas in Antiquity. The second aspect concerns the spreading of this landscape from the Middle Ages onwards. Dehesas are usually linked to the large properties owned by military orders, but most of all the spreading of the dehesa was favoured by the rise of transhumance from the thirteenth century onwards. Finally, the article emphasises that the durability of the Spanish wood pasture can be explained by a combination of several factors: insecurity along the border, the fact that transhumance was the most important industry in Spain for many centuries, and the protective laws adopted by the rural communities in order to protect their dehesas. Vincent Clément See also dehesa
I’ve put together this collection of videos from Google Video and YouTube of documentaries and news items on wolves in Spain. there also a link to a radio programme on wolves from Félix Rodríguez de la Fuente. Enjoy.
I enjoyed doing these Spanish geography quizzes. The rivers of Spain is fiendishly difficult. You may also enjoy these Spanish natural history quizzes I did last year.
Following a rather sensational article in El Pais, an interesting polemical discussion is currently going on in the Spanish press. The original article centres on the dangers of bears becoming accustomed to human presence and approaching villages and their food sources, such as beehives, with the ensuing possibility of attacks on humans that this could incur. It refrains from mentioning that, in the north of Spain, bears and humans have lived side by side for hundreds of years resulting in no, or very little, danger on the part of the humans. In fact there exists a certain admiration and respect among the people of the Cantabrian mountains for their Ursine neighbours. The article also omits the very important factor of the lack of carrion around (an important part of the bear’s diet) due to the BSE laws enforcing the removal of carcasses from the countryside. Another concern raised is that foreign tour companies, in particular the British wildlife tour company Naturetrek, are endangering the future of the bears by disturbing them in their natural habitat.
Naturetrek deny they cause the bears any disturbance, a spokesman stating that their tours look for bears at a distance using public footpaths, though they don’t guarantee sightings. The Asturian tourist board and ecologist groups are of the opinion that this kind of tourism is endangering the growth and survival of the precarious Cantabrian brown bear population. However, bear specialist organisations and the mayor of Somiedo all envisage a future of guided and regulated wildlife-watching tours contributing to the local economy without disturbing the bears. A delicate balance.
Scientists from Barcelona University have discovered that bears produce an inhibitor that prevents loss of muscle tissue during hibernation. While their body temperature stays constant and they neither eat, drink nor defecate, proteins in the body produce a potent inhibitor that allows their muscle mass to remain as it was prior to hibernation leaving them able to move normally when they exit their dens in spring. The discovery could lead to a breakthrough in human medical care.
From terra.es
Here’s another great live webcam, this time on a Spanish imperial eagle’s nest in Cabañeros National Park (Ciudad Real). At the moment of posting this the chick is less one month old. The aim is to raise awareness of the importance of the conservation of the Spanish imperial eagle.
Spain currently has 234 pairs of imperial eagles, 34 more than in 2006, of which 73 are found in Castilla-La Mancha. The bird’s principal threats are poison and power lines; between 1990 and 2007 at least 95 birds were poisoned and a further 130 were electrocuted. The lack of rabbits is also a problem. More information from aguilaimperial.org
See also Bonelli’s eagle webcam in El Garraf
Interesting 30-minute radio discussion here from Canal Ser on wolves. Taking part are Carlos de Hita (naturalist and wolf sound recordist), Carlos Sanz (Spanish wolf expert), Rodrigo Peñalosa (cattle farmer affected by wolf attacks in the Sierra de Guadarrama and José Ángel Arranz (Castilla y León government), along with an interview with Andy Tucker (Nature Trek) on wolf tourism. Note: The images of wolves you'll see have nothing to do with the radio programme.
Steve is giving us all this week a basic education in dragonflies and damselflies. "Dragonflies spend a lot of time around water for a couple of reasons...
Some rather nice photos of Mediterranean seabirds here from Jesús including this great skua.
The first Iberian lynx are set to be transferred in 2010 to the new lynx breeding facilities in Zarza de la Granadilla, Extremadura, for their later release into the wild.
With the cold, the first of this year's cranes have arrived in the dehesas of Cáceres and Salamanca, and the lagoon of Gallocanta in Aragon. La Crónica Verde reminds of the Castillian saying:
"cuando las grullas van para Castilla, coge el hacha y haz astillas” When the cranes set off for Castilla, get your axe and start chopping firewood.
Flocks of lapwings are also arriving.
The Aranese authorities have captured some excellent images of the bear Hvala with her 19-month old cub. It is unsual for a "cub" (no longer so small) to stay with its mother for so long.
Nothing to do with nature but I loved this astronaut relief on the façade of Salamanca's 12th century cathedral. Photo: Maria Read how it got there on the forum
