| Tablas de Daimiel National Park | |
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IUCN Category II (National Park)
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Tablas de Daimiel |
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| Area | 1,928 ha |
| Established | 1973 |
| Governing body | Ministry of the Environment |
Tablas de Daimiel National Park (Parque Nacional de las Tablas de Daimiel) is a nature reserve in south-central Spain on La Mancha plain in the province of Ciudad Real. It is a wetland in an arid part of Spain. Tablas de Daimiel (TDNP) is the smallest of Spain's fourteen national parks. It covers an area of 19.28 km²[1]. As well as having national park status, it enjoys international recognition as a wetland on the list of the Ramsar Convention. It is the core of the Biosphere reserve Mancha Húmeda and is a Special Protection Area for birds.
TDNP is a floodplain wetland created where the Gigüela river joins the Guadiana river. It is home to many bird species, some year-round residents, some migratory. The National Park takes its name from the town of Daimiel, although 70% of the park's territory belongs to the municipality of Villarrubia de los Ojos and only 30% to Daimiel.
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Like other Spanish wetlands, the Tablas de Daimiel had a long tradition of waterfowl hunting. As early as 1325 the infante Don Juan Manuel, in his hunting book (Libro de la caza), publicised the attributes of the banks of the river Gigüela for falconry. The water resources of the area also provided fishing and power for mills. In 1575, Philip II ordered the compilation of the Topographic Relations which commanded that the Tablas be well looked after. The value of the ecosystem for hunting continued to give the Tablas a certain amount of protection into the twentieth century. Although in the 1950s the government promoted land reclamation projects in La Mancha with the aim of reducing the amount of wetland, Franco shot duck in the area and in 1966 the Tablas became a National Hunting Reserve.
In 1963 the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) launched a project to conserve and manage wetlands, the MAR Project, which drew up a list of wetlands of international importance as a foundation for an international convention on wetlands. The draft called for the protection of wetlands habitats rather than species. The Tablas de Damiel were declared a National Park in 1973. In 1980 the national park was extended and UNESCO included Las Tablas in a biosphere reserve. In 1982 Las Tablas were included on the list of the Ramsar Convention (an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable utilization of wetlands). In 1987 Las Tablas were declared a Special Protection Area for birds (Zona de Especial Protección para las Aves in Spanish) under the European Union's Birds Directive.[2]
The park is the last surviving example of floodplain wetlands located in the arid central part of the Iberian peninsula[3]. Being located downstream from the Upper Guadiana Basin, TDNP play an important role in nutrient biogeochemistry.
The wetland landscape is characterized by recurrent seasonal inundation which until recently was maintained by both river flooding and groundwater discharges. The park's surface is 19.28 km², and the highest inundation comprises around 17 km2. TDNP is one of the most important aquatic ecosystems of Spain and was probably the main inland wetland. It is important too because of the great amount of migratory birds that pass by the zone, like ducks and geese.
Las Tablas de Daimiel are provided with two types of water making an unusual ecosystem: the Guadiana contributes fresh water, while its tributary the Gigüela is brackish.
The fresh water of the Guadiana favors the growth of the Common Reed (Phragmites australis, Phragmites communis), and the briny water of the Gigüela favors the growth of the marshy vegetation, principally the Great Fen-sedge (Cladium mariscus).
The Great Fen-sedge abounded extraordinarily, and it was one of the most extensive zones in Occidental Europe. There were groups of Bulrushes (g. Typha, Scirpus lacustris, Scirpus maritimus) and Rush (g. Juncus) in the least deep areas.
Charophytes' grasslands are one of the most characteristic formations of the National Park formed by different sorts of Chara genus (Chara hispida, Chara major, Chara canescens), also known locally as "ovas", and were able to form an almost continuous tapestry. The only trees present are the Tamarisk (Tamarix gallica, Tamarix canariensis).
Purple Heron (Ardea purpurea), Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea), Little Egret (Egretta garzetta), Black-crowned Night Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax), Great Bittern (Botaurus stellaris), Red-crested Pochard (Netta rufina), Northern Shoveler (Anas clypeata), Wigeon (Anas penelope), Northern Pintail (Anas acuta), Common Teal (Anas crecca), Eurasian Hobby (Falco subbuteo), Slavonian Grebe (Podiceps auritus), Black-necked Grebe (Podiceps nigricollis), Black-winged Stilt (Himantopus himantopus), Zitting Cisticola (Cisticola juncidis), Bearded Reedling (Panurus biarmicus)...
We may find the European freshwater crayfish (Austropotamobius pallipes), that it was in the past abundant and an important source of income for Daimiel's families, today almost extinguished in these waters. After the introduction of the great predator that the Northern pike (Esox lucius) is, other autochthonous species like the Barbus (Barbus barbus), the Common carp (Cyprinus carpio), or the Chub (Leuciscus cephalus) are now endangered species.
In the spring and the summer we may find amphibians and reptiles like the European tree frog (Hyla arborea), the Marsh Frog (Rana ridibunda), the Common Toad (Bufo bufo), the Fire Salamander (Salamandra salamandra), the Grass Snake (Natrix natrix) or the water snake Natrix maura.
Also we may find mammals like the European Polecat (Mustela putorius), the Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes), the European Otter (Lutra lutra), the Water Vole (Arvicola amphibius), as well as the ones that live in proximities of the wetlands: the European Rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus), the Cape Hare (Lepus capensis), the Least Weasel (Mustela nivalis) or the Boar (Sus scrofa).
In recent years demand for water for agriculture in the area surrounding the park has reduced the amount of wetland. Overexploitation of water resources has caused the water-table to drop. The key aquifer ("aquifer 23") has not been able to refill because of illegal wells and canalisation of the rivers.
Various ecological groups have suggested that the national park's designation as a biosphere reserve (within Mancha Húmeda) should be withdrawn as its eco-system has been broken. In June 2008, a UNESCO report recommended that the national park lose its biosphere status or, alternatively, that Spain be given an ultimatum to reverse the degradation. In the event, Spain was given time to reverse the degradation.[4]
The Spanish authorities expressed confidence that the situation would improve. Among measures taken was the acquisition of farmland with water rights so that well-water could be used for the benefit of the park rather than agriculture. In May 2009 a plan was announced to reverse the decline in the wetland area using recycled water. However, some scepticism was shown by environmentalists who noted that the aquifer was not going to be replenished. It has been suggested that a long-term solution would be to reduce the water demands of agriculture by replacing irrigated crops with agriculture suited to arid conditions (agricultura de secano in Spanish).
In the hot summer of 2009 smouldering fires of the dry peat broke out in the area. Such fires were not a new phenomenon in the region; they had affected the peatlands alongside the Guadiana in previous years, but by reappearing in the National Park, the fires represented another symptom of the wetland's degradation.[5] Faced with a possible fine from the EU, the Spanish government organised an emergency transfer of water from the Tagus. However, various conservation groups expressed the view that the solution should be found within the Guadiana basin.
Early in 2010 the situation was improved by heavier rainfall than had been experienced for several years.
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