The Doñana National Park (National Park de Doñana) is a national park in the autonomous region Andalusia, Spain. It is Spain's most important wetland, since 1969 a national park, it has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1994.
background
location
The Parque Nacional de Doñana is located on the Costa de la Luz in Andalusia, 65 kilometers from Seville and 50 kilometers from Huelva away. Most of it belongs to the province HuelvaThe rest is shared by the provinces of Seville and Cadiz.
history
Before the times of the Romans, the legendary capital of the kingdom of Tartessus, mentioned in the Hebrew Old Testament, is said to have been located here. The existence of a coastal lake, the lago ligustinus. In 1262 the area was recaptured for the Christians by Alfonso X, who declared it a royal hunting area. In the 16th century, most of it was owned by the Dukes of Medina Sidonia, as a reward for battles won, who continued to use it as a hunting ground. The area owes its name to the wife of the 7th Duke, Doña Ana Doñana, which is also the common name Coto de Doñana refers to the use for hunting - coto is called hunting area. In the period from the 16th to the 19th century, all Spanish kings were probably hunting guests in this park.
Its use as a hunting area has helped to preserve the area and the forests. On the other hand, wetlands were considered unhealthy and a cause of marsh fever, with the increase in technical possibilities, the drainage of the area began at the end of the 19th century. In the middle of the 20th century the area should be made accessible to agriculture and the abundant water used for irrigation. In particular, strawberry cultivation was expanded considerably, and extensive rice fields were also laid out. This reduced the marismas from their original size of 180,000 hectares to 35,000 hectares today, and these could only survive as a growing awareness of the ecological importance of these wetlands emerged.
In 1952, the Spanish conservationists Francisco Bernis and José Antonio Valverde (who later became the first director of the national park) started a campaign for its protection. This campaign and Guy Mountford's book "Portrait of a Wilderness" contributed significantly to the founding of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) in 1961. At the end of 1963, the WWF, together with the Spanish Science Council, bought 6,794 hectares of land in the Coto de Doñana, which is still called today Reserva Biologica de Doñana represent the core area of the national park, which was finally established on October 18, 1969. Today the national park is 54,251 hectares, and since 1989 it has been surrounded by a further 53,835 hectares of nature reserve.
Influences from the surrounding area continued to threaten the area. Agriculture and the establishment of the holiday complex Matalascañas with their high water consumption led to a lowering of the groundwater level. The use of chemicals in the surrounding agriculture was blamed for repeated bird deaths. In 1998 the dam of a basin broke near Aznalcóllar and toxic waste water from a lead and zinc mine reached the national park via the Guadiamar River. Since 1992 the Doñana Foundation 21 tries to coordinate the interests of nature conservation and business, for example the use of chemicals in rice cultivation has been reduced by 90% and over 28,000 hectares in the nature park have been converted to organic agriculture.
landscape
The landscape is dominated by the marismas, flat, periodically flooded land areas - formed from the huge amounts of sediment that the Guadalquivir deposits in its delta - shaped. Part of the sand that enters the sea is washed back onto land and forms the huge dunes that separate the marismas from the sea. These dunes extend along a 30 km stretch of beach from Matalascañas to the mouth of the Guadalquivir in the Atlantic. They are up to 40 m high and form parallel rows of dunes, those of dune valleys, the corrales be separated. An umbrella pine forest grows in these valleys and is buried as the shifting dunes advance.
The Guadalquivir only contributes to the water balance of the marismas during major floods, the sea can only reach a few lagoons near the mouth of the Guadalquivir. The area is mainly filled by the rainfall in autumn and winter, the rainfall in spring maintains the water level until April.
climate
The climate is Mediterranean, with mild, relatively rainy winters and dry, hot summers. The maximum daily temperatures are in the months of July and August at 34º C, in winter at 18º C. The rainiest months are the months November to March.
flora
fauna
The national park is located on one of the most important bird migration routes, the route via Gibraltar to Africa. Hundreds of thousands of birds can be seen here at the time of bird migration. Up to 400,000 ducks and 70,000 geese as well as 20,000 black-tailed godwit, which are on the red list of threatened animals both in Germany and internationally, overwinter here every year.
In spring the breeding guests, herons and spoonbills as well as the extremely rare Iberian imperial eagle come. In total, more than 300 species of birds can be found in the national park, including rare species such as the purple grouse, oar duck, barnyard chickens and great-combed railing.[1]
48 species of mammals live in the national park, special attention is paid to the protection of the endangered Iberian lynx (Lynx pardinus), also known as the Iberian lynx. About 30-35 specimens live in the bushes, the total population on the Iberian Peninsula is estimated at about 150 specimens.[2][3] Conservation breeding in captivity has started here and in the Sierra de Andújar, which currently includes 37 lynx.[4] With a population of 60 animals, probably in 2010[outdated] start the transfer of animals to other rearing stations and their release into the wild. A breeding and reintroduction of the Andalusian animals is also planned in Portugal.[5]
getting there
The park can be visited from both the province of Huelva and the province of Cadiz. Visits from the province of Cadiz are only possible from Sanlucar de Barrameda from possible. Two forms of visit are offered. You can go up the Guadalquivir on a ship, the Real Fernando, and you can do two guided country walks (English and Spanish). Once on the right side of the Guadalquivir to visit a wooded part and once on the left side of the Guadalquivir to visit the Marismas. Furthermore, it is possible to book a combined off-road bus / boat excursion (Spanish) that leads through almost all zones of the park. An individual visit to the park is not possible. In summer (1.5 to 14.9.) Daily excursions are offered except Sundays and in winter (15.9. To 30.4.). However, excursions are often canceled in winter due to insufficient number of participants or bad weather, while in summer they are often sold out. In any case, it is advisable to reserve a few days in advance. Reservations can be made on site, but also through many hotels and tour guides / travel agencies. Of Conil de la Frontera and Novo Sancti Petri Smaller tour operators offer excursion packages that also include a visit to the city of Sanlucar de Barrameda and an escort to the park for interpreting.
Fees / permits
Combined off-road bus / boat tour: 35 euros (as of 2014)
Real Fernando boat tour: approx. 17 euros (as of 2012)
Tourist Attractions
activities
shop
kitchen
accommodation
Hotels and hostels
camping
security
trips
swell
literature
Web links
- Information about the Doñana National Park - official website for tourism in Spain (German)
- Doñana Natural Park (span.)
- Doñana Foundation 21
- Coto de Doñana Information about the national park as well as practical travel tips (places, arrival, accommodation, food and drink)
