Sierra Nevada Flora
Causes of Biological Diversity
The origin of the unusual number of endemic species present
has been placed at the end of the Tertiary for almost two million years. During
this era and the advent of the Quaternary period, the weather across Europe
suffered a gradual cooling that allowed plant species in northern latitudes and
the Arctic to move progressively toward the south of Europe and occupy much of
the interior uplands and the
After the end of the last ice age, the peculiar situation of
According to sources from the Ministry of Environment of
The Botanical Garden of the Cortijuela, situated on the slopes of Cerro del Trevenque about 1600 m above sea level, is responsible for the protection, conservation, generation, and investigation of the plants of this mountain range, particularly of its nearly 100 vulnerable species that are threatened or critically endangered.
Soils are more advanced Enebrales and Piornal, forming communities rich in chamaephytes fruticosa hemicryptophytes (Arenaria imbricata, Festuca indigestible). There is also an abundance of endemic plants, including Genista versicolor, Arenaria pungens, and Potentilla nevadensis.
In limestone areas at higher elevations (Durcal river headwaters, Dornajo) with a scarcity of land, are spine with juniper and juniper mixed with padded thyme and species such as carbonellis Sideritis, Astragalus, and granatesis.
Thus many species have developed their own characteristics
or have been developed independently because of its isolation, therefore
creating a greater number of endemics in the mountains that exist in countries
such as
Examples of endemic species are: chamomile real (granatensis
Artemis), Sierra Nevada daffodil (Narcissus nevadensis), and the star of the
snow (Plantago nivalis), the latter being one of the great symbols of the
massif, equivalent to the Pyrenees or edelweiss in the
This environment develops Borreguiles (name given in the
Vegetation
Depending on the area, in areas of carbonate rocks (limestone, for example), the vegetation consists mainly of river Olmedo (Ulmus minor), poplar (Populus alba), and Sauceda (Salix spp.).
On acidic soils are alder grove (Alnus glutinosa), Sauceda
(Salix atrocinerea), and ash (Fraxinus angustifolia). Unfortunately,
degradation of riparian (river) vegetation in
The vegetation of the
Vegetation in Lowland
Areas
Below 700 meters, only on the south side of the mountain, is the Thermo floor. On this floor there are very hot summers and frosts are virtually nonexistent in winter. Few parts of this strip of land have not grown, but studies say that this area would be combined with an oak scrub lentiscus (Pistacia lentiscus), junipers, lamps (Aristolochia baetica), and sarsaparilla (Smilax aspera). Soil has degraded because of phenomena such as forest fires and Romeral (Rosmarinus officinalis), Ulex parviflorus, and aulagares of Jarales.
In this range of heights is the mesomediterranean floor, which is between 700 and 1300 m. On this floor the summers are still warm but winter frosts occur. There are many lentiscus (Pistacia lentiscus), Acebuche, and sarsaparilla (Smilax aspera). The oak floors are silicious, with oak, juniper, Torviscas, and honeysuckle (Lonicera Etruscan).
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Between 1300 and 1900 meters is flat land. On this floor the summers are mild and winters are slightly colder, with frequent frosts and snow. The predominant species are melojo and, to a lesser extent, the oak and maple.
More common is the oak, which is generally between 1300 and 1750 m. Oak has to develop both on carbonate soils and on acid rocks. The oak forests are dominated by oak and, depending on soil type and altitude, shrubs such as juniper (Juniperus oxycedrus), agracejo (Berberis hispanica), Torviscas (Daphne gnidium), Rusco (Ruscus aculeatus), and Majuelo (Crataegus monogyna).
Vegetation of
From 1900 m to 2,700 m, the floor is Mediterranean Gold. It
is from this point where you strip the majority of species that make Sierra
On this floor are bioclimatic pines and juniper. The vegetation consists of species of tree and shrub habitat (Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris), creeping juniper (Juniperus sabina), J. communis subsp. (Hemisphaerica, Prunus ramburii), and a scrub pulvinular (Vella spinosa, Anthyllis Erinacea, Bupleurum spinosum).
