Sierra de Cardeña y Montoro nature reserve - Cordoba, Spain

next ›

Sierra de Cardeña-Montoro Natural Park (Parque Natural Sierra de Cardeña-Montoro) is situated in the north east of the province of Cordoba and stands in the Sierra Morena, a 41,212-hectare natural extension of Los Pedroches Valley. This Park combines a wealth of natural resources with the long, rich cultural traditions of the towns and villages which are located within it. Its smooth relief is made up of granite-like material and is home to a typically Mediterranean ecosystem, with large masses of cork and holm oak forest accompanied by a few surviving groves of gall oaks on the shadier slopes. Cardeña.The River Yeguas, with its exuberant vegetation consisting of rows of woods, flows through deep ravines across the eastern slopes, forming a natural border with the neighbouring Sierra de Andujar Natural Park. Altitudes range between 180 and 828 metres. Human influence here has been minimal, and valleys such as that of the River Yeguas still retain a wild, unspoiled look.

The climate is of a dry, sub-humid nature, with high summer temperatures and abundant precipitation in winter, since it is the rainiest area in the province of Cordoba.

Flora of the Sierra de Cardeña y Montoro nature reserve

Species typical of Mediterranean vegetation, primarily holm oaks, wild olives, umbrella pines and cluster pines. The Escorialejo area is home to the only Pyrenees oak forest in the province of Cordoba.

Fauna of the Sierra de Cardeña y Montoro nature reserve

The brushwood shelters a number of animal species such as the deer, stag and wild boar, all of which coexist with the rest of the area’s wealth of fauna: the lynx and several varieties of wolf (both under grave threat of distinction), as well as the wild cat, mongoose, genet, common kestrel, long-tailed lizard, etc. The skies are filled with the most powerful species of bird of prey to be found anywhere in the Iberian peninsula, the imperial eagle and the golden eagle, who dominate others such as the kite, goshawk and sparrowhawk and provide leftovers for those great scavengers, the black and tawny vultures.
The banks of the river bed are home to the otter, blackbird, kingfisher and stripe-necked terrapin, to name but the most significant.
A rich and varied animal community inhabits the forest, featuring highly-valued large game such as the deer, stag and wild boar.