Nautical crossing of the LIFE A-MAR project in the Balearic Islands
14 May - 20 May
Between 14 and 20 May, the planned stopovers in the Balearic Islands will take place as part of the nautical journey that is touring more than 10 marine areas of the Natura 2000 Network in the Mediterranean to raise awareness of the benefits and opportunities of these places.
The Biodiversity Foundation of the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge (MITECO), in coordination with the Directorate-General for Biodiversity, Forests and Desertification and the autonomous communities involved, is launching this information campaign of the European project LIFE A-MAR, Knowing and loving the marine areas of the Natura 2000 Network to protect them, coordinated by the Italian Federation of Parks and Nature Reserves (Federparchi), and which is being developed in parallel in Italy and Spain. It has the financial contribution of the LIFE Program of the European Union
The campaign is being carried out off the coasts of the Region of Murcia, Valencia, the Balearic Islands, Catalonia and Andalusia until June 6. In each of the eight stops that will be made in total, guided tours and participatory sessions are being carried out with socioeconomic agents and the local population.
The largest network of protected areas
The Natura 2000 Network is the European network of protected areas, the largest in the world. Its purpose is to ensure the long-term conservation of priority species and habitats for Europe, and to contribute to halting the loss of biodiversity, while ensuring economic development that respects these important natural values. They are managed both by the autonomous community where each space is located and by the General State Administration.
The Spanish Mediterranean is made up of 128 marine or maritime-terrestrial areas, covering 16% of its waters.
Protected areas in the Balearic Islands
Off the coast of the Balearic Islands are 52 of these marine spaces. The nautical campaign will cover five of them: Canal de Ibiza, Ses Salines d ́Eivissa i Formentera, Sa Dragonera, Badies de Pollença i Alcúdia and Costa sud de Menorca-Costa Nord de Ciutadella.
It will carry out stopovers and activities in two of them:
Ses Salines d ́Eivissa i Formentera is an SCI and SPA area between the old salt flats of Ibiza and Formentera. Its marshes are a privileged place for bird watching. The marine area is characterised by the presence of Posidonia oceanica in an excellent state of conservation, a key species for the conservation of the Mediterranean marine ecosystem. In this space, the extension and state of conservation of the posidonia are excellent. Other protected species that inhabit its waters and coasts are the shag (Glosorus aristotelis), the loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta), the bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) and the Balearic shearwater (Puffinus mauretanicus), the most endangered bird in Europe.
Sa Dragonera, in Mallorca, is an area formed by the island of Sa Dragonera and the islets of Es Pantaleu and Sa Mitjana.La area of the Park is 275 hectares of land, which are complemented by the 457 hectares of the marine reserve of fishing interest. The great biological value of the marine area is represented by a wide variety of habitats, such as Posidonia oceanica meadows or large forests of macroalgae that offer refuge for the regeneration of a multitude of species of fish, crustaceans or octopuses. The steep rocky bottoms of the outer waters quickly reach great depths, with numerous cracks and caves in the cliffs that provide valuable habitats for a wide variety of species. This space is also SCI and SPA.
PROGRAM
📌 Formentera. May 14 and 15:
– May 14, all day. Public awareness campaign. On board the sailboat docked in the port of La Savina.
– May 14, 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Meeting with socio-economic agents. Formentera water sports centre. C/ de s ́Almadrava, 10.
– May 15, 10:00 a.m. 1:00 p.m. Guided kayak tour of Espalmador Island, diving and walking route.
Meeting point: Whitesand Surf Formentera – Camino de Illetes, 07870, Balearic Islands.
Registration and more information.
📌 Ibiza. May 16 and 17:
– May 16, all day. Public awareness campaign. On board the sailboat docked in the port of Ibiza.
– May 16, 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Meeting with socio-economic agents. Confraria de pescadors d ́Eivissa, Moll Pesquero, 0 S N, 07800 Ibiza.
– May 17. Guided boat tour of the Ses Salines d’Eivissa i Formentera Natural Park. The tour includes visits to salt flats, protected islets and marine areas of high biodiversity, with stops for observation and interpretation. Departure from the port of Ibiza. To be confirmed.
📌 Majorca. May 19 and 20:
– 19 May, all morning: Public awareness campaign. On board the sailboat docked in the port of Andraxt.
– May 19, 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Meeting with socio-economic agents. Club de Vela Puerto de Andratx– Avda.Gabriel Roca, 27 07157 – Puerto de Andratx
– May 20, 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Guided boat and land tour of the surroundings of the Island of Sa Dragonera.
Meeting point: port of Sant Elm.
