DIES Bros.' WMW -l'Albufera de Valencia-

DIES Bros.'WMW L'Albufera de Valencia

Coastal marshes are dynamic and complex ecosystems. They contain a wide variety of plant
and animal life and function to serve humans in a number of ways. In many areas, the resources
produced by coastal marshes provide means of livelihood for local inhabitants.

L'Albufera de Valencia is such a coastal marsh, one of the biggest lagoons of the Mediterranean sea, and it suffered from early colonisation by first settlers in the roman ages. In subsequent centuries, the awkward balance between nature conditions and habitat use resulted in considerable reduction in the amount of marshland and in severe alteration of its habitat quality.

Geological Setting | Environmental Conditions | Conservation Facts

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DIES Bros.'WMW Geological setting

L'Albufera de Valencia (39.20 N, 00.15 W; E Spain) is a coastal lagoon on the Western Mediterranean seaboard. The shelf of l'Albufera basin was filled with river deposits, which formed the marshes. Long shore currents at sea, running southward, built up a sand barrier island offshore. A continuous 30 km beach barrier separated the shallow lagoon from the adjacent sea about the 15th century. The connection with the sea occurs through narrow inlets. Lagoon waters suffered transition from saline to fresh, owing to freshwater catchment from inland tributaries and the setting of sluices at the inlets in order to avoid seawater inflows and to favour agricultural uses.

Up to 70 % of the original lagoon surface has been reclaimed, through drainage and impoundment, mostly into rice fields. The untransformed lagoon has stands of helophytic vegetation over silts and clays of former river deposits or sandbars. Halophytic plant communities develop over sand in areas close to natural inlets or into depressions of the beach barrier, which are influenced by seawater. The continental shelf extends up to 20 km offshore with a very low gradient.

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DIES Bros.'WMW Environmental conditions

Despite intensive agricultural, industrial and urban development of its environs there exists up to 22.000 ha of wetland and coastal habitats at l'Albufera de València. Habitat diversity includes paddies -rice fields- (ca.14.500 ha), crossed by up to 20 main channels several kilometres long, the untransformed lagoon (ca.2.800 ha) with extensive reedbed islands and fringe (ca.350 ha), saltmarshes (ca.60 ha), dune systems and seashore.

Excessive enrichment and high input of nutrients produced man induced water eutrophication after the seventies, affecting both the lagoon and the coastal waters. As stated before, the marshy habitat has been transformed into paddies throughout, which determines the water regime of the whole ecosystem and causes some pesticide and fertiliser side effects. Fishing exploitation of the lagoon waters is focused on migratory marine species, such as mullet Mugil sp. (several dozen metric tons harvested per year) and eel Anguilla anguilla. Duck, Moorhen, Coot, Lapwing, Snipe and Jack Snipe hunting is carried out from October to January. A game bag shortage in recent seasons has been faced with an increased hunting pressure (night hunting) and the removal of bag limits. Despite EU regulations, lead shot will be used in the forthcoming seasons at this Ramsar site. Tourism and recreational uses has caused increased urbanisation and consequent disturbance to the coastline habitats. The offshore waters are considered among the most productive of the Spanish Mediterranean, in terms of phytoplankton and fisheries.

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DIES Bros.'WMW Conservation facts

The Albufera de Valencia was declared a Natural Park (a regional conservation area) in 1986 (Decreto 89/1986, de 8 de julio), protecting 21.120 ha of wetland complex. In May 1990 it was declared a Ramsar Site (21.000 ha) and was also declared a Special Protection Area (SPA) in june 1994 (94/24/CE) and an Important Bird Area (IBA).

In addition to several protected habitats (Directive 92/5510/CE) found at l'Albufera de Valencia, there are some endangered plant and animal species. Rare plants includes Kosteletzkya pentacarpos as well as endemic Limonium dufforei. There are also endemic mollusc (Unio turtoni valentinus), shrimp (Dugastella valentina) and fish species (Valencia toothcarp Valencia hispanica). There exist breeding bird colonies, with several thousand pairs of herons (seven species) and terns (five species), as well as some breeding pairs of endangered duck species (Marbled Teal Marmaronetta angustirostris) and populations of Moustached Warbler Acrocephalus melanopogon and Bearded Tit Panurus biarmicus. There are thousands of wintering waterbirds, including Grey Heron Ardea cinerea, egrets (both Cattle Bubulcus ibis and Little Egretta garzetta), Great Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo, duck (including several thousand Red-crested Pochards Netta rufina) and gulls. There is also a considerable presence of wintering raptors, the Marsh Harrier Circus aeruginosus being the commonest one. <