Flora & Fauna

The original vegetation of Ayamonte, the holm-aok wood, has progressively been replaced by pine woods and eucalyptus plantations. The limited agricultural tradition - due to the quality of the land, which is poor in nutrients and very difficult to work - is now being reassessed as it value increases with the introduction and cultivation of citrus fruits.

The marshes of the Guadiana river are of great ornithological, aquatic and botanical interest, as in addition to the river bed and its sides, they offer their own peculiarities for vegetation and fauna.
The vegetation changes to reflect the salinity of the waters. In a whole, it forms an area of a extraordinary enviromental wealth.

Plants of the beach and the dunes: The extreme conditions, which this ecosystem presents, make the adaptation by plants very difficult for different reasons such as the effect of wave action. A small number of plants adapt to this environment, by employing a means of defense which permits their existence (they have to achieve the complete growth cycle in a short period of time). Some plants have fat or thorny leaves, and others have a very hard outside layer to prevent evaporation. It is common for these plants to have very long and deep roots to get to water. Some of the most representative plants are:

Sea Thistle

Beach:
- Arenaria de mar ( Honkenya peploides ): we find them on the sand, even within range of the waves.
- Sea Caterpillar (Cakile marítima ): Also near the shore, and in the dunes
- Sea wallflower (Mathiola sinuata): It has purple flowers
- Rubia de mar (Crucianella marítima): It grows on the beach sand, well away from the water.
- Lechetrezna de mar (Euphorbia paralias): It also grows on the sand of the beach and at the edge of the dunes.
- Sea thistle (Eryngium maritimun): It only grows on the sands of the coasts.
- Barrón ( Ammophila arenaria ): it's the best adapted flower to the enviroment, and used to stop erosion of the beaches.
- Carretón de playa (Medicago marina): its leaves are full of hair, and looks like white velvet.
- Sea Lily (Pancratium maritimun): One of the most beautiful flowers on the beach.
- Cotton Grass (Othantus maritumus): a species of silver daisy, without any green part.
- Pycnocomon rutifolium : from July on, Isla Canela is full of them.
- Centinodia marítima (Polygonum maritimun) : During spring and summer.

Sea Lily

Meadow: among the trees and the bushes of the meadow we should focus on the following:
- Corn tree: it is a tree of everlasting leaves, and can become up to 500 years old and 25 metres tall. This species starts to bloom in April or May.
- Eucalyptus: It is a tough tree, growing to 30 metres tall and even more. the period of the blooming is generally in autumn and winter.
- Strawberry tree: It is a small bush, becoming up to 10 metres tall. The blooming is in autumn or the beginning of the winter, at the same time when the fruit of the previous year ripen.
- Palm heart: They can be found mainly at tropical zones. It is a small bush which can can become three or four metres tall. Its flowers are small with a yellow cover and joined in dense bunch. Its fruit ripen in Autumn.
- Pine-nut pine: It's a robust tree, which can become 30 metres tall. From its morphological characteristics we can focus on its rounded shape as a beach umbrella.
- We can also find holm-oaks, olive trees, other species of pines, almond trees, citrics and other fruit trees, prickly pears, rosemary, wild rose, among others.

FAUNA:
Whilst the variety of birdlife around Ayamonte is but a part of that described in Birds & Birding, nevertheless it is worthwhile mentioning those that are frequently seen in the marshes of Ayamonte. They are mainly semiwater birds, having tall legs and flexible necks. In these marshes we often see spoonbills, herons, purple herons, storks, flamingoes among others and a great variety of fish and molluscs. On the beach, the most common bird is the seagull.

In addition to the birds there are also chamaeleons on the dunes, and inland a great diversity of big and small game, such as hares, rabbits, partridges, wild boar and deer, together with minor species such as ichneumon, hedgehog, genets, etc.