Mammals of Spain. Spain is home to a diverse range of mammal species, many of which are endemic to the Iberian Peninsula. From the majestic Iberian lynx to the elusive European wildcat, Spain boasts a rich variety of carnivores, herbivores, and omnivores. The country’s varied geography and climate have given rise to different mammalian ecosystems, such as the Pyrenees mountain range in the north and the Mediterranean forests and grasslands in the south. Despite threats such as habitat loss and climate change, many of Spain’s mammal populations are thriving, and efforts are being made to protect them for future generations.
Spain is also home to a diverse array of marine mammals, thanks to its long coastline and position at the confluence of the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. Some of the most notable marine mammals found in Spanish waters include the common dolphin, the bottlenose dolphin, and the long-finned pilot whale. Spain is also home to the Mediterranean monk seal, one of the world’s most endangered marine mammals, and several species of whales and porpoises, such as the fin whale, the sperm whale, and the harbour porpoise. These marine mammals are essential components of Spain’s marine ecosystems, playing important roles in maintaining the health and balance of the ocean’s food chains. However, like many other marine mammals around the world, they face threats from human activities such as fishing, pollution, and climate change.
The Spanish Ibex (Capra pyrenaica hispanica) Cabra montés frequently found in herds across the Andalucian mountain ranges are wild mountain goats. There were until fairly recently, more subspecies spaced around the Iberian peninsular, but now only two exist.
These mammals which originate exclusively in the mountains of Iberia are known as Cabra montés in Spanish. They are generally shades of brown around the body with black markings on the chest, flanks and legs in the males, whereas the females are paler. The adult males can reach a weight of 80-100 kg and are approximately double the size of the females.
I’ve been living in this lovely area of Western Andalucia for the last 20 years or so and dedicate most of my time to the running of English language tourist information websites for the towns of Cádiz, Ronda, Grazalema, the famous or infamous Caminito del Rey, and also Wildside Holidays, which promotes sustainable and eco-friendly businesses running wildlife and walking holidays in Spain. My articles contain affiliate links that will help you reserve a hotel, bus, train or activity in the area. You don’t pay more, but by using them you do support this website. Thankyou!
With 10 or more species of bat known to reside in Barcelona, identification is pretty much impossible but never the less this video taken in the summer of 2022 is really interesting.
Abstract: Albinism and leucism are commonly confused in the literature. Despite the fact that these congenial disorders affect only a small proportion of bat populations, they seem to be widely spread since reports of affected bats are found from over the world. In this communication we report for the first time a leucistic Pipistrellus pygmaeus (Leach 1825). It was captured in the Ebro Delta Natural Park (Iberian Peninsula) in a biological field station near a wetland with rice paddies, where over 100 bat boxes are deployed to monitor bat populations. The individual had whitish fur over the whole of its body (dorsal and ventral parts); nevertheless its eyes and wing membranes had normal pigmentation. Although an albino P. pygmeaus has been reported from Spain, this represents the first report of leucism in this species.
In this note we report a leucistic Pipistrellus pygmaeus (Leach 1825) captured in a bat box in the Ebro Delta Natural Park (Iberian Peninsula). Although a previous case of albinism has been recorded in Spain, this record represents the first report of leusicm in this species worldwide. Taking into consideration all the information regarding amelanisms in bats and the presence of white fur on several species, we consider that it would be speculation to conclude that the existence of hypopigmentation has detrimental or positive effects on individuals. Bearing in mind the lack of chromatic aberrations reported from the Iberian Peninsula, we encourage researchers to publish findings to enable us to improve knowledge of how these mutations affect bat survival and behaviour
The bats of Spain, Portugal and Gibraltar
An excellent knowledge base with links to information pages for all species. Particularily handy if you need to know the common names for each country: https://secemu.org/en/los-murcielagos-espana/
The Grazalema Guide
The best way to see all our web projects in one place is over at the Grazalema Guide.
The Grazalema Guide – Tourist Information Portal for the Sierra de Grazalema, Wildside Holidays, The town of Ronda and the Caminito del Rey.
I’ve been living in this lovely area of Western Andalucia for the last 20 years or so and dedicate most of my time to the running of English language tourist information websites for the towns of Cádiz, Ronda, Grazalema, the famous or infamous Caminito del Rey, and also Wildside Holidays, which promotes sustainable and eco-friendly businesses running wildlife and walking holidays in Spain. My articles contain affiliate links that will help you reserve a hotel, bus, train or activity in the area. You don’t pay more, but by using them you do support this website. Thankyou!
Mostly nocturnal, crepiscular and secretive (like most mammals here), badgers in Spain are rarely seen unless you actively seek them out or come across a “sett” (the tunnels – tejonera in Spanish) whilst walking in the countryside. In fact, the first sign that they are in the area is very often a dead badger at the side of the road after being hit by a car at night.
The “design a stamp” winner for 2018 was entitled “Tejon en Cantabria”
A large, robust mustelid, with a small head and wide, short neck, the badger has an elongated body with a short tail and legs with long and tough nails on the feet. The head is white with two bands and black stripes cover the eyes. The body is grey on the back and darker on the flanks. Males and females are pretty much identical though males are often slightly larger and more robust. There are no similar species in Spain so identification is not an issue.
Badgers in Spain, a subspecies?
Iberian badgers were previously described as the subspecies Meles meles marianensis due to a smaller size and pale markings on back and flanks. These characteristics coincide with those of two other Mediterranean subspecies. (M. m. rhodius and M. m. arcalus) and with those of the badgers of southern France. None of the subspecies described in Europe is considered valid so In the absence of new morphological and genetic studies, the Iberian badger should be considered as belonging to the nominate species Meles meles
Habitat and diet
Absent from the Canary islands and the Balearics they are present throughout mainland Spain from low desert habitat in Almeria to high mountain pastures in the Pyrenees often higher than 2000 metres. Badgers are content living in a vaired habitat of deciduous, mixed and coniferous forests and pastoral landscapes with hedgerows and scrub. They tend to avoid wetland areas and those lacking vegetation cover such as alpine and subalpine areas. In the center of the Iberian peninsula they seem to prefer mountainous areas of medium elevation, with pastures and coniferous plantations. In the south (Doñana National Park) they select areas of scrub and avoid pine forests and meadows.
The badgers burrows (tejonera in Spanish) have multiple chambers and entrances with the entire group helping in carrying in fresh bedding and removing soiled material. They also have a specific area used as a latrine strategically situated away from the sett.
As an omnivore, badgers will eat just about anything they find and the varied diet consists of roots, fruits, fungi, molluscs, beetles and other invertebrates. Amphibians, reptiles and carrion are also on the menu. Badgers maximize the use of abundant and predictable food such as the earthworm in areas of the north of the Peninsula. Studies in Doñana national park show that rabbit is consumed frequently. The size of the territory also depends on the abundance of food.
Reproduction
One to four pups are normally born between November to January after a delayed implantation. Delayed implantation, also known as embryonic diapause, is where an egg is fertilized soon after mating but the cub will not be born until several months later. Shortly after mating, the fertilised egg develops into a very early foetus known as a blastocyst. Development then slows down almost to a standstill. Later, shorter day lengths triggers hormonal signals that cause the blastocyst to implant in the wall lining. Once implanted, the embryo resumes its normal development and completes its transformation into becoming a fully-formed cub.
Great video of a badger in Spain
I love this video. The badger obviously knows that something is watching it but its inquisitiveness gest the btter of it each time it runs away. 🙂
Abundance
In many parts of Europe Badgers live in family groups of typically around four to seven individuals. Here in Spain there have been few studies as to the density of the population but, in general, a set will contain a male, female and this years cubs. If food is abundant then the subadults (last years cubs) may also stay with the family group for a longer time before dispersing to create their own. They have however been recorded across the entire Iberian peninsular as can be seen from this year 2000 distribution map.
An older (2000) distribution map of badgers in Spain.
Historic and current threats to badgers in Spain
Historically, badgers were hunted for hair to make shaving brushes and in the north of Spain for its meat. Badger fat has been used medicinally for many years (and is still for sale today! Just google “badger fat”)
The flesh, blood and grease of the badger are very useful for oils, ointments, salves and powders, for shortness of breath, the cough of the lungs, for the stone, sprained sinews, collachs etc. The skin being well dressed is very warm and comfortable for ancient people who are troubled with paralytic disorder
The Iberian wolf is known to hunt and kill badgers on their territory and of course the presence of bovine tuberculosis can cause problems in the sanitation of cattle herds where culling sometimes takes place. (In England, the hugely controversial culling of badger populations is used to reduce the incidence of bovine tuberculosis in cattle.) Other threats include the use of predator control methods (poison, snares, traps). Illegal hunting can also endanger the survival of the species in local areas.
I’ve been living in this lovely area of Western Andalucia for the last 20 years or so and dedicate most of my time to the running of English language tourist information websites for the towns of Cádiz, Ronda, Grazalema, the famous or infamous Caminito del Rey, and also Wildside Holidays, which promotes sustainable and eco-friendly businesses running wildlife and walking holidays in Spain. My articles contain affiliate links that will help you reserve a hotel, bus, train or activity in the area. You don’t pay more, but by using them you do support this website. Thankyou!
From the most endangered cat species in the world to a success story for managed wildlife protection schemes, the reintroducion of the Iberian lynx to Catalonia and Aragon seems to be the next step forward with the project being supported by the Spanish Government and an area of around 30,000 hectares being studied for suitability.
The Iberian lynx (Lynx pardinus) has been absent from Catalonia and Aragon for over a century but in 2018 an introduced lynx called “Litio” managed to reach Santa Coloma de Cervelló just 15 minutes from Barcelona, after making a seemingly impossible 1000 km journey crossing motorways, rivers and mountains from the Portuguese Algarve.
“Litio” was later captured (in lynx heaven one supposes) on a farm surrounded by rabbits and cherry trees and returned to Doñana (Huelva), where the species has one of its largest populations.
There are two main areas of studies for this project with the first being a suitable habitat with food supply (rabbits) for the reintroduction of the species in an area that includes 10,000 hectares of Aragón and 20,000 in Catalonia and the second (being larger and more difficult) with the study and implementation of wildlife “corridors” connecting some of the eastern Iberian populations of lynx.
Reintroduction habitat
The initial field work in both Catalonia and Aragón has located possible ideal habitats, with an abundance of prey such as rabbits, shelters such as rock and scrub and with little human infrastructure. In Catalonia the location is the Mas Melons-Alfés area, a natural space already protected by the Natura 2000 network, between the Garrigues and Segrià regions south of Lleida and adjacent to Aragón. In Aragón the chosen area is the Sierra de Alcubierre, located at the western limit of Los Monegros. (Los Monegros is also being studied for posible inclusion as national Park)
Wildlife corridors and project coperation
The initial idea would be to create a corridor from the east, linking the regions of Valencia, Murcia, Catalonia and Aragón. The plan is also to cooperate with existing and new lynx projects such as the two new lynx re introduction areas, one in Lorca (Murcia) and the other in Sierra Arana (Granada) which already have funding of almost 20 million euros over the next five years. (In Valencia, there is also a project run by the Cardenal Herrera University to study the viability of lynx reintroductions in the Valencian Community).
It seems that all the experts are agreeing that the only way forward now for the Iberian Lynx is the natural mixing of the various lynx populations across Iberia in order to ensure a complete genetic diversity of the species.
Further reading on the Reintroducion of Iberian lynx to Catalonia and Aragon
The PreLynxCatAr project will 12 months and in its preliminary phase the suitability of the territory, already defined, will be studied to assess the risks (such as roads) and its population of rabbits. It is being carried out by CBD-Hábitat, CREW Foundation, Trenca, Zoo de Barcelona and the Fundación Biodiversidad del Ministerio para la Transición Ecológica y el Reto Demográfico del Gobierno de España.
I’ve been living in this lovely area of Western Andalucia for the last 20 years or so and dedicate most of my time to the running of English language tourist information websites for the towns of Cádiz, Ronda, Grazalema, the famous or infamous Caminito del Rey, and also Wildside Holidays, which promotes sustainable and eco-friendly businesses running wildlife and walking holidays in Spain. My articles contain affiliate links that will help you reserve a hotel, bus, train or activity in the area. You don’t pay more, but by using them you do support this website. Thankyou!
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