Cabrera archipelago
| Cabrera archipelago | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
||
| Waters | Mediterranean Sea | |
| archipelago | Balearic Islands | |
| Geographical location | 39 ° 10 ′ N , 2 ° 58 ′ E | |
|
||
| Number of islands | 18th | |
| Main island | Cabrera | |
| Total land area | 18.36 km² | |
| Residents | 20th | |
The Cabrera Archipelago is located in the south of the Balearic Islands and consists of 18 islands . The entire archipelago belongs to the Archipiélago de Cabrera National Park and is practically uninhabited, apart from a garrison of the Spanish armed forces and a few civilians. Geologically it belongs to Mallorca; 15,000 years ago, Cabrera was separated from Mallorca due to rising sea levels.
geography
The Cabrera archipelago has a total area of 18.36 km² and a coastline of 54 kilometers. The archipelago is ten kilometers from Cap de les Salines , the southern tip of Mallorca. Geologically, the islands are the southern extension of the Serres de Llevant Mountains . There are 18 islands in the archipelago. The largest is Cabrera with 1155 hectares, followed by Illa des Conills with 137 hectares.
Other islands in the archipelago are: Estel de Fora , Estel des Coll , Estel de s'Esclata Sang , Estels Xapats (two islands), Illa de l'Imperial , Illa de ses Bledes , Illa de ses Rates , Illa des Fonoll , L ' Esponja , Na Foradada , Na Plana , Na Pobra , Na Redona , s'Illot de na Foradada and s'Illot Pla .
flora
The potential natural vegetation of the islands is a Garriga with wild olive trees , which Ullastrar is called. In Ullastrar more shrubs grow with small, leathery leaves as Phoenician juniper ( Juniperus phoenicea subsp. Turbinata ), mastic , rosemary , the buckthorn -Art Rhamnus ludovici-salvatoris , Erica multiflora that Ephedra -Art Ephedra fragilis , tree spurge and giant fennel . This type of vegetation can only be found scattered. Aleppo pines are planted on around a third of the area of Cabrera Gran .
Typical of the vegetation on the cliffs are the thorny cushions of Astragalus ( Astragalus balearicus ), germander ( Teucrium subespinosum ) and dorycnium ( Dorycnium fulgurans ). The tree-shaped poplar ( Lavatera arborea ) and the shrub snail ( Medicago arborea subsp. Citrina ) also thrive here . A subspecies of a dye red species ( Rubia angustifolia caespitosa ) occurs exclusively on Cabrera.
Underwater meadows made of Mediterranean Neptune grass ( Posidonia oceanica ) and various algae are characteristic of the marine area around the Cabrera Islands. In the clear water, they grow at depths of up to 45 meters.
fauna
The islands of the Cabrera archipelago are an important stop for many migratory birds. Every spring the Grup Balear d'Ornitologia i Defensa de la Naturalesa carries out a large ringing campaign here. In contrast, the number of bird species that breed on the islands is quite low at 26. These include osprey , Eleanor's falcon and peregrine falcon . There are about 400 breeding pairs of the coral gull and 1500 breeding pairs of the Mediterranean seagull . Between 80 and 140 pairs of the Balearic Shearwaters breed on the islands of Conillera and Fonoll . Yellow-billed shearwaters , petrels and common shags also breed on the archipelago .
Bird species that are not tied to the sea include the triel , blue roe , Sardinian warbler , whitebeared warbler , velvet warbler and graycatcher . Goldfinches , greenlings and bloodlines are common.
With the exception of some bat species, all land-dwelling mammals on the Cabrera Islands were introduced by humans. Today, for example, rabbits , the gorse cat and feral domestic cats can be found there. The Balearic Lizard ( Podarcis lilfordi ) has split into different subspecies on the islands.
Bottlenose dolphins , common dolphins , blue and white dolphins , pilot whales and the occasional sperm whale can be found in the sea around the islands . The Mediterranean monk seal had one of its last occurrences on the Cabrera Islands. More than 200 species of fish and around 1000 invertebrates live in the waters around Cabrera . The loggerhead turtle is one of the most striking marine life .
