Desierto de Tabernas

The Desert of Tabernas is a Natural Area located in the municipalities of Tabernas, Gádor, Santa Cruz, Alboloduy and Gérgal in the province of Almeria, between Filabres and Alhamilla´s mountains. Its area is 11,625 hectares. He is considered the only desert area itself of the entire European continent. It was declared a Natural Area by Law 2 / 1989 of July 18, for approving the inventory of protected natural areas of Andalusia and establishing additional measures for their protection (No. BOJA. 60, 27/07/1989 ) is also a Special Protection Area for Birds [ZEPA (1989)], and is proposed as Sites of Community Interest (SCI).

The site offers a vast and rich variety of environmental interest, especially geology.

About the flora, can be noted that a high number of endemic species unique to the area and globally rare species that only appear there and elsewhere in the same soil and climatic characterization of the Mediterranean North Africa, together with endemic plant associations of this territory.

The landscape is bad - lands, and beneath it lies a natural-scale museum, lively and unique in the European context for its relevance to the study of the erosive processes and forms and the relationship with the same geological phenomena occurring in the Neogene basins Béticas over the past 8 million years. It is possible to observe, for example, a specimen of natural forms: fairy chimneys (small pedestals finished by a small particle or clasts more resistant to erosion laminar) or grooves (consisting small incisions marking the start of the fitting of the current in the slopes) and gullied (vertical walls of deep gullies) are the most erosive caused by surface runoff.

The geological resources of this area are extraordinary: powerful sequences (sedimentary record of large submarine fans today fossils), sismitas (layers deformed in folds as a result of seismic activity at the time of deposition), fossil reefs, gypsum-related crisis desiccation of the Mediterranean, the emblematic and majestic Mount Alfaro, who along with other small reliefs Nearby are magnificent examples of "reliefs on slopes", the phenomena of tubificación (piping), reaching dimensions of speleology, by the ramblas and the exotic "travertines salt desert," are just some examples.

Technical Data:

Area: 11,625 Ha
Declaration Date: 28 July 1989
Province: Almería
Municipalities: Alboloduy, Gádor, Gergal, Santa Cruz, Tavernas

Source: Consejería Medio Ambiente, Junta de Andalucía.