Forests in Portugal growing on sand

Sand bank in a forest showing the depth of the sand and what the trees are rooted in. Photo by Steve Andrews

In some parts of Portugal there are mixed evergreen forests that are growing on sand and very sandy soil. There are some of these woodlands around Quinta do Conde, a town in the municipality of Sesimbra between Lisbon and Setubal. 

For some reason there is very little information available on the Internet about these areas of forest and heath, although I would have thought they would be especially interesting to naturalists, as well as anyone who likes rambling in the countryside. Although you are miles from the sea you are walking on sand!

Not in sand dunes but inland. Photo by Steve Andrews

 The forests merge with sandy heathland and offer a very interesting habitat for many plants and animals. In many places the ground is nearly pure sand and, although this is inland, it looks far more like an area close to the sea.

Cork Oak Photo by Steve Andrews

 There are a mixture of evergreen trees that somehow manage to thrive despite the poor quality of their soil, evergreen conifers including the Stone or Umbrella Pine (Pinus pinea), as well as the Holm Oak (Quercus ilex) and Cork Oak (Q. suber), the Eucalyptus and other trees. The undergrowth consists of many shrubs and wild flowers and is very colourful in spring.

Silene species Photo by Steve Andrews

 Pink-flowered Catchfly species, (Silene), and the bright blue Scrambling Gromwell (Lithodora diffusa) provide floral eye candy, along with the white, pink and yellow Rockrose species (Cistus spp). The French Lavender (Lavandula stoechas) can be found on the outskirts of these woods and in clearings.

Shrubby Gromwell Photo by Steve Andrews

 Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare) grows in aromatic anise-scented clumps and this herb provides a food-plant for Swallowtail Butterflies (Papilio machaon).   The Swallowtail is a very rare British butterfly but is quite common in Portugal.

Swallowtail Photo by Steve Andrews

 There are also plenty of Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria ssp aegeria) butterflies. The Speckled Wood found here is a subspecies of those seen in the UK and have lighter coloured wings. 

Pine Processionary moth caterpillars In Public Domain

 The caterpillars of the Pine Processionary Moth (Thaumetopoea pityocampa) spin their overwintering nests in the branches of the pines and then descend in March to look for suitable places to pupate. This species of moth is named after the long head-to-tail processions its larvae make. These caterpillars should not be touched because they are covered in hairs that can cause extreme irritation. Look but don’t touch if you find any of these!

Coronella girondica in the Peneda-Gerês National Park, Portugal. Photo by Esv - Eduard Solà Vázquez

  I would think the dry sandy conditions would be good for reptiles so was not surprised to find a Southern Smooth Snake (Coronella girondica) hiding under a slab of stone in a grassy area near one of these forests. 

As its name suggests, this snake is very similar to the Smooth Snake (C. austriaca), which is a very rare species in Britain and confined to a few sandy heaths in England. These snakes are harmless and they feed on other small reptiles and mice.

The forests growing on sand in Portugal make a wonderful place to explore all year around.

5 cleanest lakes in the world

Clean lakes are an important water resource for many reasons. They are a great attraction for tourists, a place where many activities such as fishing, swimming and sailing can be enjoyed, and a natural environment for wildlife.  They can also be used as reservoirs.

1. Lake Annecy

View of Lake Annecy (Photo: Zimmerman76)

Lake Annecy or Lac d’Annecy, as it is called in French, is the third largest lake in France and is located in the mountains of the Haute-Savoie region, of which Annecy is the capital. Lake Annecy is recognised as “Europe’s cleanest lake.”

Lake Annecy is a very popular with tourists who often take part in swimming diving, and other water sports.

Annecy is a wonderful place not just for sightseeing but for learning French and there is a French Language School established in the town.

2. Blue Lake (Tasman)

Blue Lake (Photo: Timothy Musson)

Blue Lake is the name given to a small lake in the Nelson Lakes National Park, which is part of the Southern Alps of New Zealand. Also known as Rotomairewhenua, it is the clearest freshwater lake in the whole world and is sacred to the Maori people. Swimming and diving are not allowed and use of this lake is strictly controlled.

It is drained by the western branch of the Sabine River and is usually reached from the Travers-Sabine Circuit.

3. Lake McKenzie

Lake McKenzie (Photo: Muse Lin)

Lake McKenzie is also known as Boorangoora and is located on Fraser Island in Queensland, Australia. Its sands are white and composed of silica and the water is so pure that many freshwater species cannot live in it.

Many people visit Lake McKenzie to sunbathe on its shores and enjoy its unique beauty. Camping and picnic areas are provided as well as public toilets.

4. Crater Lake

Crater Lake (Photo: Jonathan Miske)

Crater Lake in Oregon is the deepest lake in North America. It is actually a caldera lake and was formed some 7,700 years ago by the collapse of the volcano that is known today as Mount Mazama.

With no rivers going in or out of the lake, it is only filled by rain and melted snow and there is little to cause water pollution. Because of this Crater Lake has become world famous for its exceptional clarity and deep blue colour.

Old Man of the Lake at Cleetwood Cove (Photo: Greg Willis)

Crater Lake is also famous for a full-sized tree that, preserved by the coldness of the water, has been bobbing about in the waters of the lake for over a century and has now worn down to a very large stump and has affectionately become known as the “Old Man of the Lake.”

5. Arnensee

Lake Arnen (Photo: imagea.org)

The Arnensee is a lake in the Berne area of Switzerland, and is also known as Lake Arnen.  The Arnensee is used as a reservoir, but referring to the lake’s great beauty and location in the municipality of Gsteig in the Swiss mountains, it has been called the “Pearl of Saanenland.”

Extinct and very rare British butterflies that live in Portugal - Black-veined White and Large Tortoiseshell

Black-veined White

Black-veined White (Aporia crataegi). Photo by Christian Fischer

There are several British butterflies that are either extinct now or very rare that can be found in Portugal, though possibly not in great numbers there too. 

The Black-veined White (Aporia crataegi) mysteriously became extinct in the UK back in 1925. It is a mystery because the food-plants of its caterpillar are plentiful. The caterpillars feed on Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna), and various Prunus (Plum) and Pyrus (Pear) species.  

The caterpillars overwinter and it is thought that mild winters in Britain may have led to their demise. Predation by birds and disease are also other suggestions as to why this species has vanished. Its last colony was in south-east England and it had also been established in Hampshire, Gloucestershire and Sussex.

The Black-Veined White, as its name suggests, has white wings veined in black. It lives in colonies and has a liking for orchards. Although it has become extinct in Britain it is still surviving in Portugal, where it has been reported from the south-eastern Algarve area, though it is not common there. This butterfly can be found in some other parts of Europe, in North America and in temperate Asia.

Large Tortoiseshell

Nymphalis polychloros Photo by Algirdas

 

 The Large Tortoiseshell (Nymphalis polychloros) looks very much like a larger version of the Small Tortoiseshell (Aglais urticae), hence its name, but unlike the smaller species it is very rare in the UK and its caterpillars feed on very different food-plants. While Small Tortoiseshell larvae feed on Stinging Nettles (Urtica dioica), those of the Large Tortoiseshell eat the leaves of various trees including Willow (Salix spp), Elm (Ulmus) and the White Poplar (Populus alba).

The Small Tortoiseshell was once a very common British butterfly but has been declining in numbers drastically in recent years, though it is still widely distributed, however, the Large Tortoiseshell has nearly vanished from the UK.  

The Large Tortiseshell can still be found in the Cork Oak (Quercus suber) forests  of the western Algarve and elsewhere in Portugal at times, though it is uncommon and regarded as a threatened species of butterfly. 

Bath White 

Illustration from John Curtis's British Entomology Volume 5 Bath White in Public Domain

The Bath White (Pontia dalidice) is a very rare migrant to the UK but is common in Portugal and much of southern Europe. It frequents rough ground and dry slopes. The caterpillar of the Bath White feeds on various plants in the Cress family (Cruciferae) and also on wild Mignonettes (Reseda spp).

The Swallowtail Butterfly 

Swallowtail. Photo by Steve Andrews

The Swallowtail (Papilio machaon) is a large and very pretty butterfly that is common in Portugal and even breeds in the gardens of many towns and cities where it can be seen flying throughout most of the year. 
Its caterpillar feeds on Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare) and Rue (Ruta graveolens). 

The Swallowtail is a very rare butterfly in the UK and only lives in the Norfolk Broads area where the caterpillars feed on the Milk Parsley (Peucidanum palustre). 

The Iberian Water Frog or Perez’s Frog is not the Iberian frog

Pelophylax perezi. Photo by David Perez

The Iberian water frog lives in Iberia (Spain and Portugal) as its name suggests but it is also known as Perez’s frog (Pelophylax perezi) and the Iberian green frog. Its scientific name used to be Rana perezi, and this is still used by many zoologists and naturalists. 

 It needs to be distinguished from the Iberian frog (Rana iberica), which also lives in Spain and Portugal but unlike the Iberian water frog which is very common and widely distributed, the Iberian frog is now very rare and limited by the number of locations it still survives in. 

The Iberian water frog’s key to success is that it isn’t fussy about its habitat and is found in ponds, lakes, reservoirs, rivers, marshes, and just about anywhere there is freshwater. It is often found breeding in garden ponds and also in the large water tank reservoirs made for farm irrigation.

It also lives in southern France and has been successfully introduced into Tenerife and the Canary Islands, the Azores and Madeira, as well as the Balearic Islands. It is also reported from a couple of sites in the UK where it is surviving.

The Iberian waterfrog is usually some shade of green as an overall colour but sometimes blueish specimens are found. These frogs often have a yellowish line down their backs.

Juvenile Iberian water frog. Photo by Steve Andrews

The Iberian water frog is a large species with females being bigger than the males.  The males croak loudly and congregate in large numbers in the breeding season. They can be territorial and will fight. 

The Iberian water frog is also known to resort to cannibalism at times and will eat its own tadpoles and smaller frogs.

The Iberian waterfrog, as its name suggests, spends most of its time in the water or very near it. It likes to bask in the sun at the edges of ponds or on lily-pads or anything else it can haul its body out onto.

 

Iberian Water Frogs. Quinta do Lago, Algarve, Portugal. 07/05/2102

  The Iberian Frog 

Rana iberica. Photo by Luis Fernández García

The Iberian frog favours mountainous regions and needs rivers, streams, ponds and lakes in these areas. It is also found in some lowland parts but is seriously declining in numbers.

  It looks similar to the Common frog (R.temporaria) and shares its habitat with this species in some places. It can grow to about 7 cm (2.8 in) in length but a more usual size is 5 cm (2.0 in).

The Iberian frog is having problems mainly due to habitat loss caused by deforestation and land development and is also threatened by introduced and naturalised predatory species including the American mink (Neovison vison). Climate Change is also said to be taking its toll on this species of frog and its official Conservation Status is “Near Threatened.”

SAVE THE FROGS 

Sadly it's not just the Iberian frog that is declining in numbers and in danger, because worldwide many species of frog, toad, salamander and newt are in serious trouble too. Water pollution, pesticides, herbicides, habitat destruction, the danger from traffic on roads, competition with other species, disease and Climate Change are all contributing to this, and many types are actually endangered to the point of facing extinction.

Dr Kerry Kriger has set up the first ever charity devoted to saving frogs and amphibians. Find out what you can do to help Save The Frogs here!