Natural Images

The Sierra de Grazalema Natural Park

The Mediterranean vegetation includes ample amounts of holm oak, cork oak and pines. The carob tree and wild olive together with an abundance of smaller shrubs flourish in this environment. The variety of wild flowers in this area is incredibly diverse with the springtime producing a wonderful array of colors and scents. April and May are best for flowers whilst June and July are excellent for butterflies. During July and August temperatures soar to 35 degrees Celsius and there are days when 40 degrees Celsius is not uncommon.

The griffon vulture has one of the largest nesting colonies in Spain close to Grazalema. Various species of eagle such as booted, short toed and Bonellis and perhaps golden can be seen. Other birds of prey such as the peregrine falcon, lesser kestrel and the Egyptian vulture may also be observed. At night, if you are very lucky, you may hear the unmistakable call of the eagle owl. A vast number of smaller birds such as the blue rock thrush, rock thrush and black wheat ear thrive in this varied habitat. Bee eaters nest in the area and there have recently been sightings of rollers. Bird observation is best during the breeding season starting in April and continuing until the winter migrations in September.

The mammals that can be found here are wild boar, red deer, roe deer, Spanish ibex, badger, fox, wild cat, genet, mongoose, hare and the very elusive otter. Amongst the reptiles and amphibians living here, the stripeless tree frog, terrapin, oscillated lizard and horseshoe whip snake are a few of the examples

 

The Natural Park status of the Sierra de Grazalema gives protection to the wealth of fauna and flora that are to be found here.

The parkland covers an area of 51,695 hectares and is comprised largely of limestone terrain which contains grottos, escarpments and deep gorges. The highest peak here "Torreon" (1654 meters) is found in the Sierra del Pinar. Some of the finest examples of the Spanish fir (Abies pinsapo) grow on these slopes. It is a vegetation relic of the tertiary period. An authentic living fossil, the Spanish fir grows best on land around 1000 meters above sea-level.