Spain is one of the European countries with the greatest natural heritage, but the planet is full of these incredible natural places. The importance of natural heritage is that it teaches us the ability of nature to build and maintain beautiful landscapes and ecosystems. In addition, it is home to a large number of species that need its protection and that can contribute a lot to society from a scientific point of view.
In this AgroCorrn article we want to explain what natural heritage is and some examples .
- What is natural heritage
- Natural heritage in Spain
- Examples of natural heritage in Spain
Index
What is natural heritage
Natural heritage is defined as the set of natural assets located in the territory of a country . This heritage is protected in different countries through various categories of protection. Among these categories, the natural park stands out, due to its pioneering nature. Through these protection measures it is intended to reconcile the conservation of the natural heritage with the public enjoyment of this heritage, also serving for environmental education activities . The set of these protection measures enjoy great success in the world, there are currently more than 100,000 protected areas around the world .
Fortunately, Spain enjoys great biodiversity and a significant number of protected areas. The number and surface of these protected areas has increased considerably in recent years through the different initiatives of each autonomous community. In addition to this, for some years now, the European Union has created the Natura 2000 Network, the objective of which is to share all the policies and criteria for the protection of natural areas at the community level. Thus, it divides protected natural spaces into two main categories:
- ZEPA: special protection areas for birds
- SCI: places of community importance
The Spanish network of Natural Spaces is one of the largest in Europe and provides protection to the different ecosystems, landscapes and species of the Spanish natural heritage.
Natural heritage in Spain
In the case of Spain, the natural heritage extends throughout the Pyrenees, the north of the peninsula, the Canary Islands and the Island of Menorca, the Garajonay National Park or the Doñana National Park in Andalusia.
The different levels of protection of natural spaces range from World Heritage (category granted since 1972 by UNESCO), protected area, Biosphere reserve , ZEPA and SCI. All these levels try to protect and conserve the different natural landscapes and biodiversity that they encompass.
Examples of natural heritage in Spain
Some examples of natural heritage in Spain and, therefore, of protected natural spaces are:
Garajonay National Park
This national park is located in the center of the Island of La Gomera, in the Canary Islands. Its main attraction is that it preserves one of the most important laurel forests. It also stands out for its great diversity in plant formations, its impressive geological monuments and the large number of endemic species it houses.
In addition to being a national park, it is also part of the world heritage, in which it has been found since 1986 and was the first Spanish natural park included in this list.
If you like natural parks, we recommend that you see this other AgroCorrn article with a list of more than 100 Natural Parks in Spain .
Teide National Park
This park stands out for the beauty of its landscape, being one of the most beautiful in the world. The park is home to a great biological wealth with a high percentage of endemic plant species in the area and a significant amount of invertebrate fauna.
In addition to this, it has the highest point on the island of Tenerife and Spain, the Teide volcano. It is also the third largest volcano in the world at 3,718 meters and is the highest peak on Earth emerged from the Atlantic Ocean.
The Teide National Park has been on the World Heritage list in the category of natural asset since 2007.
Doñana national park
This park is located in the Gofo de Cádiz on the Atlantic Ocean, between the provinces of Seville and Huelva and forms the largest ecological reserve in Europe. Doñana Park is essential for the conservation of the most threatened feline in Europe, the Iberian lynx, and the imperial eagle. Since 1994, this park is inscribed on the world heritage list.
The pyrenees
This mountain is located in the Autonomous Community of Aragon and included in the list of mixed world heritage (natural and cultural) since 1997.
Ibiza
It houses important marine and coastal ecosystems, where biodiversity and culture interact. Thus, it was declared a mixed type World Heritage Site in 1999.
If you want to read more articles similar to What is natural heritage and examples , we recommend that you enter our category of Other environment .
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