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Palma Nature - Palma de Mallorca
Not without good reason, La Palma is also known
as isla bonita and referred to as a miniature continent. The
bulwarks of the Caldera, the northsouth aligned summit ridge
and the almost all-year-round north-east trade winds are responsible
for the countless micro-climates found on La Palma and the
contrasting vegetation levels lying close together on the
steep mountain slopes.
Along the rugged coastal cliffs , broken by coves with black,
volcanic sand beaches, succulent plants are found growing
and higher up, bananas, citrus and tropical fruits and food
crops, vines, tobacco and almonds. The hillsides are covered
with sunlit pine forests while only broom and a few stuned
pine trees cling tothe bizarre rock formations in the summit
region.
The island has grown from north to south. Deep ravines carpeted
with laurel forests run through the older, already heavily
eroded north. Amid these prehistoric, sub-tropical forests
abounding in giant ferns. Los Tilos can be found, declared
a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO in 1983. A glaring contrast
to this lush vegetation in provided by the still-active south
of the island with its bizantine volcanic landscapes. It was
here that the Teneguía, Spain´s most recent volcanic
eruption took place in 1971.
Characteristic of the island´s varied nature is the
fact that of the 744 species of wild plants growing on La
Palma, 219 are indigenous, 70 are only found on La Palma,
104 only in the Canaries and 45 only in Macaronesia (Canaries,
Azores, Madeira and Cape Verde islands). Moreover, 55% of
the island is covered by woodland, 35% is listed as a conservation
area. The Caldera de Taburiente was declared a National Park
in 1954, in the autumm of 2002 the whole island became a Biosphere
Reserve. The waters off the west coast are not only a prohibited
fishing area (Reserva Marina) but also a Site of Community
Interest. A further European conservation area lies on the
north coast of the island.
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