The varied landscape of the Alcaracejos Mozárabe route entails an important biodiversity with a very diverse flora and fauna. In Alcaracejos Mozárabe we can enjoy all the splendor of the Mediterranean mountains and the dehesa, as well as the singularity offered by the mountain olive grove, dotted with patches of maquis that are authentic reserves of animal and plant species. This environment can satisfy the most demanding naturalist, since it is a unique space for bird watching or discovering the impressive floral variety that exists in the mosaic of landscapes that can be admired between the mountains and Alcaracejos.
One of the characteristics of these spaces lies in the generation of different microclimates that foster a wide diversity. The most humid shady areas contrast with the sunny olive groves where the soil is more exposed to tillage. Similarly, the valleys of rivers and streams become reservoirs of flora and fauna that offer highly changing qualities in small stretches of landscape.
Flora
The botanical variety offered by the different landscapes and tree and scrub formations is very wide. In Alcaracejos Mozárabe we can admire a wide range of quercus: holm oaks, cork oaks, holm oaks, gall oaks and even some Pyrenean oak in the cooler shaded and higher altitudes of Calatraveño. These species alternate with a high-quality noble scrub: strawberry trees, gorse, white jara, sticky jara, jaguarzos, thyme, rosemary, lavender, heather…, among other species.
The banks of the rivers and streams are a reservoir of plant species: alder brakes, elms, tamujos, brambles, wild rose bushes, oleanders, reeds… which serve as a refuge for an important fauna. In addition, the banks of the rivers, with the rocky areas, have not traditionally been exposed to work or grazing, so they offer us authentic pre-forest formations, preserved intact over the centuries. At the opposite end of the landscape, with a lower density of trees and scrub, the meadows and steppes offer a wide variety of flowers throughout the year. The chromatic beauty and the pulse of color that the dehesas offer in spring is a true spectacle for the senses.
For fans of mycology, the catalog of species is vast. But suffice it to mention the milk cap, the macrolepiotas, the boletus or the mushrooms as an example of a variety that should be known before opting for its consumption.
Fauna
The fauna that we can see on the Alcaracejos Mozárabe tour is as diverse as the flora and landscapes. If we want to observe fauna in its environment, it is essential to go equipped with binoculars, wear inconspicuous colored clothes and walk in silence. The Guadalbarbo and Cuzna valleys are ideal places to see different birds of prey such as the booted eagle, the Bonelli’s eagle or even the royal eagle and, occasionally, the imperial eagle. Griffon and black vultures are very frequent in the skies of Mozarabic Alcaracejos. Their flocks fly over the meadows in search of cattle carcasses. Depending on the time of year, the Mediterranean forest and the holm oak forest are home to species such as the blue tit, the great tit, the robin, the thrush, warblers, warblers, among other passerines, whose variety in this area is very wide. One of the most singular species, the kingfisher, is frequent in the rivers and streams, where it shares space with the otter, frequent in the Cuzna pools. The rivers also attract mallards, coots, herons, herons and, in some cases, black storks.
Badgers, foxes or martens are some of the most prominent predators on these lands. Even the lynx begins to be seen in the mountains in this sector of the mountains. The reintroduction programs of the Guadalmellato contemplate the Cuzna and Guadalbarbo valleys as priority areas for the expansion of this species. The great feline already inhabits some enclaves that Alcaracejos Mozarabe runs through and is an example of the environmental quality exhibited by the surroundings of this route.
The hunting fauna is very remarkable and attracts many hunters to the limited areas every year. Deer and wild boar are frequent. There are even preserves where mouflons and fallow deer have been introduced. Rabbits, hares, wood pigeons and turtle doves are the most outstanding species of small game, together with the fox, very common in all the landscapes of Alcaracejos Mozárabe.
Already in the areas closest to the town, fields, orchards and olive groves, we can see migratory birds in winter such as lapwings, which arrive in winter, or cranes, which appear punctually in the clearest meadows and whose flight in flocks is easily spotted. Larks, larks, storks, magpies, magpies, little bustards and other steppes are abundant in these open landscapes.
