Natural Park of s'Albufera de Mallorca

S'Albufera de Mallorca is a wetland area, of approximately 2,580 ha with a perimeter of 32 kilometres, embracing part of the municipality of Alcúdia, Muro and sa Pobla, and has had extraordinary economic and ecological importance in this zone of the island. It is important not to confuse this lagoon, known as the big one, with the small lagoon at Pollença.

A large part of s'Albufera (1,700 hectares) conserves its natural characteristics intact, which make it a privileged place to be with an important environmental worth because it has remained relatively undisturbed for a long time period.

It is necessary to point out, however, that on the 3rd of November 2000 a fire destroyed a total of 450 ha of the area, 440 ha of which belonged to the Natural Park. Luckily, it wasn't the nesting season and the ecological consequences haven't been too devastating. In the spring of 2001 it will be possible to enjoy a total recovery of the affected area.

Here, the main vegetation is the canyet and the cesquera plants, which were formerly used on the island for, amongst other things, feeding livestock. During the months of summer, the sea water floods into s'Albufera, which during the rest of the year is nourished by fresh water running from the high ground. This causes salted earth. In these lands saltworts and rushes grow, but also it should be noted that so do elm trees, tamarisks and albàs.

The fauna that inhabits s'Albufera is as diverse as abundant. Counting only birds, there are about 230 species that live, nest or spend some time in this protected natural space. Of the ones that nest, it is important to highlight the coot, the cap-blau, the suís, the avisador and sedge-warble. However, there are also many migratory species which stop only to rest, such as flamingos or the limícoles, and also those who spend the whole winter such as ducks, herons... In the wetland areas, fish such as eels, sea-pechs, silverfish, amphibians and reptiles are also abundant.

With the arrival of mass tourism in the sixties, the landscape in the region of s'Albufera was dramatically altered along the coastal area, when large spaces were built on and lakes and canals were constructed around the hotels and apartment blocks.

To put a halt to this process and preserve the richness of the biggest wetland area of Majorca, the Balearic Government approved, in 1988, the creation of the first Natural Park of the Balearic Islands, with a total of 1,700 ha protected. Also, the area was declared ZEPA (Bird Special Protection Zone), and a Biosphere Reserve. Also, s'Albufera is included in the Ramsar treaty for the protection of wetlands.

 

Inaguration of Cabrera Interpretation Centre

The National Maritime-Terrestrial Park of Cabrera’s interpretation centre is located in the Colònia de Sant Jordi in the municipality of Ses Salines.

Although the sub-archipelago of Cabrera belongs to the city of Palma administratively speaking, its geographic proximity to Colònia de Sant Jordi makes the latter the logical place for the park’s interpretation centre, since boats to the park also leave from Mallorca’s southern zone (Portopetro and Colònia de Sant Jordi). The interpretation centre allows visitors to garner first-hand knowledge of the wealth of nature that makes this island deserve the maximum protection. Because of the park’s fragile environment and so as not to disturb the peace and quiet of its different species, visits are only allowed in the environs of the port of Cabrera, which is why the interpretation centre is an excellent opportunity to understand its values better. Aquariums display the different species that can be found in the surrounding waters and another section introduces its terrestrial medium. These contents are framed by Mediterranean history and culture on display in facilities whose main building is inspired by the megalithic talayotic constructions of the islands of Mallorca and Menorca.

Mondragó Natural Park

The Mondragó Natural Park is located in one of the areas with the richest bird life in Mallorca. It has a great variety of landscapes, such as winding river torrents which flow out into beautiful beaches and oak woods with an abundance of orchids.

This Natural Area of Special Interest is in the south-east of Mallorca, in the municipal district of Santanyí. It was designated a Natural Park in 1992 and since 1995 it has been regarded as an 'Area of Special Protection for Birds' by the European governing body; not in vain, since more than seventy species have been recorded in the park, most of them migratory birds and those typical of marshland areas.

The zone is made up of horizontal strata of calcareous sands which formed part of the reefs during the Miocene Period. The park has a surface area of 785 hectares and is 57 metres at its highest point.

It has a great variety of landscapes. Along the coastline are ravines carved out by winding river torrents which culminate in beautiful beaches with small dune systems; there are also cliffs; and marshlands with a vegetation of reed beds and rushes, such as those at the coves of S'Amarador and ses Fonts de n'Alis. Inland, however, there are oak woods with numerous orchids.

Great diversity of birds

The park is home to a great variety of birds. At any point along the coast it is easy to sight shags or Audouin's gulls, and from time to time, ospreys land near the lagoons.

Apart from its ecological value, Mondragó is interesting from the ethnological point of view. In the past, part of the park was used for agriculture and livestock farming, and bearing witness to this are the barraques de roter, small buildings of dry stone which were used as dwellings and rest places for animals; the barraques de curucull, used for keeping cattle; or the sínies, which served to extract the underground water with which they used to water the crops.

Visitors can follow different itineraries in the park, on foot or by bicycle, and enjoy the different ecosystems.

The Serra Tramuntana

The Serra de Tramuntana is the highest mountain range and the most extensive natural area on Mallorca, representing a zone of great ecological value. The range is approximately 90 km long, running from the cape of Formentor in Pollença to the cape of Sa Mola in Andratx, with an average width of 15 km. It runs from south west to north east and 12 km2 of the range lies above 1,000 m, where there is an average of 14 days of snowfall per year. The highest peaks on Mallorca are found in the central section of the range, with Puig Major (1,447 m), Massanella (1,352 m), Tossals Verds (1,115 m) and Puig Tomir (1,103 m).

The coastline along the Serra de Tramuntana is very rugged, with few coves and some steep cliffs. It is the most outstanding karst area on Mallorca, with a significant amount of limestone which has been eroded by the effects of weather and water. This gives rise to deep torrents, such as the Torrent de Pareis, which reaches a height of 200 m in the area known as Sa Fosca.

The vegetation includes a series of endemic species. In the highest areas brushwood grows, whilst in the lower zones we find the most extensive holm-oak woods on Mallorca. These woods have long been exploited by man, which has reduced their surface area. There are also large sections of pine forest, which in some spots has replaced the holm-oak woods.

In terms of fauna, there are various mammals, such as goats and sheep, which help to maintain the vegetation and which serve as a source of food for black voltures. There are also pine martens, genets and weasels. There are many species of bird which inhabit the Serra de Tramuntana or pass through during their migrations. There is a wide range of birds of prey, such as the osprey and Eleonora´s falcon, which comes to the Mediterranean from the island of Madagascar. The Mallorcan midwife toad is an amphibian which was discovered in the 1980s, though it was already known as a fossil; the small population of this animal inhabit the least accessible pools and torrents of the Serra de Tramuntana.

Sa Dragonera

 Sa Dragonera island was proclaimed Natural Park on January 26, 1995. It became a model of the defence of nature in Mallorca, after 20 years of popular claims and fight against its development carried out by ecologist groups leaded by GOB. A boat called "Margarita" does regular connections along the day between Sa Dragonera and Mallorca, from Sant Elm. It takes 20 minutes to cross the 780 m of Es Freu channel.

It is 2,88 hectares big and it is 3700 metres long. Its highest hill is Far Vell hill (353 m). On the west coast there are spectacular cliffs that can be up to 300 m high. The eastern part goes down smoothly towards coves and Cala Lledó natural port, where information on Sa Dragonera is displayed in the visitor´s centre. Other islets are also part of the Natural Park. These are Es Pantaleu, 170 metres away from the Sant Elm beach; and Els Calafats, 60 metres away from Sa dragonera.

The vegetation is adapted to the shortage of water and soil, the effect of the marine salt and human intervention up to the 70´s. Seabirds, birds of prey and migratory birds are the most characteristic wildlife in Sa Dragonera. Small reptiles like an endemic lizard subspecies and the common lizard. The auchtocthonous mammals are represented by four different species of bats and the "mular" dolphin, a 2-3 metres long species that usually approaches the coast.

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No to far from our apartments you will find, diferent areas were you can practice sports like nordic walking,mountainbike... or just enjoy the scenery.