Sierra Nevadas mountain goats

Last week I went with a few friends and again climbed Travenque a superb mountain east of Granada. After a steep ascent the final few meters offer a short scramble to a truly dramatic summit. The view east to Valetta, Caballo and the ski resort is one of the best in the range.

As often happens during a trip in these mountains during the walk we spotted a small herd of ‘’cabra de montana’’. Many of you will have seen herds of these ‘’mountain goats’’, normally running away into the distance. For those who haven’t these truly wild animals are about the size of a fallow deer, they are a tan colour with darker shoulders and haunches with the larger older animals having a pair large sweeping horns. Well suited to the mountain terrain where they are generally found they have short muscular legs and large soft hooves which are perfect for gripping steep rock faces. Generally browsers they live in areas of mixed scrub and broken ground in the lower mountains but I have seen them at 3,000m near the Caldera refuge on Mulhacen, on the edge of Lanjaron and also on the coast near Cerro Gordo. Often the only sign you have that they are in the area are large amounts of droppings on summits though you will often hear a sharp high pitched call as outlying individuals warn a larger group that you are approaching.

The groups you see will either be made up of females with their young or males. The two groups do not generally mix apart from the breeding season in autumn. This is also the time when males fight for dominance of a herd with head butting contests.

My first sighting of ‘’cabra’’ was about 10 years ago whilst descending the south ridge of Mulhacen. Needless to say seeing one of these animals for the first time was quite a shock particularly as it was quite a large male with a fantastic pair of horns. I have become accustomed to looking out for them but even so it’s often not until they move that I spot them as they are well camouflaged and blend into the backgrounds remarkably well.

Whilst often called mountain goats these animals are actually a type of Ibex, Capra pyrenacia . At one time there were a total of four subspecies. One, a Portugese subspecies, died out in 1892. Shockingly the other, Capra pyrenaica pyrenaica, became extinct on the 6th January 2000. A remarkably specific date. However this was when the last known specimen of a subspecies peculiar to the Pyrenees died. A frightening example of how easily we can loose unique animals. The two remaining subspecies however seem to be doing well and at the moment at least appear to be growing in numbers with an estimated population across the Iberian Peninsula of about 50,000.

Next time you’re out in the mountains take time out to try to spot these remarkable animals.

Summer in The Sierra Nevada

Summer in the Sierra Nevada with Sierra Nevada Guides

July is a good time to visit the high peaks and “borreguiles” (wet areas, tarns and springs) of the high Sierra Nevada. As the snow retreats the wildlife blossoms, insects, birds and especially the flowers are all in abundance. The temperature high up rarely exceeds 20 degrees making this a comfortable place for walking and scrambling though not so cold as to need layers of clothing.

Though the Eagles and Vultures are at first glance the most observable birds to watch, Wheatears, Redstarts, Alpine Accentors and Swifts are no less impressive.

The borreguiles are carpeted with Gentians, “Estrella de las Nieves” (a unique woolly plantain), Butterwort’s and many other endemic species. These areas are truly impressive though start to dry out by the end of August.

One of the most noticeable features walking in the high Sierra Nevada are the numbers of beetles. Everywhere underfoot  are a large variety of black beetles (tread carefully).  The fact they are nearly all black is no coincidence having evolved to absorb the summer sun.

Common on the summit of Mulhacen 3482m is the Tortoiseshell butterfly. Though not an uncommon butterfly it’s proliferation at altitude is amazing and may account for the abundance of Swifts and their amazing aerobatics!

Whatever time you visit the Sierra Nevada, there is always wildlife around to observe. Our team of International Mountain Leaders are trained in environmental interpretation and can advise you on the best things to see at any time. We are always happy to advise you or to provide you with a guide.

Wildlife in Spain’s Sierra Nevada Mountains

Spring Birds and Wildlife in Spain’s Sierra Nevada Mountains

We have just returned from a three week break at our mountain smallholding high on the southern slopes of the Sierra Nevada. Although we had several forays out mountaineering, rock climbing and walking, much of the time was spent working on the land. Which inevitably brings you close to nature.  Spring in this part of Spain sees the return or just passing of many birds returning to Europe from Africa where they spent the winter and this trip was to reward us with sightings of several birds including the Wheatear visiting our garden daily and an Egyptian Vulture circling overhead on several occasions.

The other daily sight is the local goatherd passing beside our land as they forage and browse their way around the mountainside.  It’s always been obvious to us that when we are not around the farmer is not so careful about keeping them off our land because of the nibbled trees and plants. Whilst we are there the farmer tends to keep the goats in order by shouting at them and throwing rocks towards them (his dogs being useless at rounding them up). 

The one in the picture here has snuck around the back of our house where there are new almonds growing. Proof if it were needed that goats will do there own thing and without fencing we will always loose a proportion of our plants.

Mind you, it’s not just the goats causing damage.  On our land we have rabbits, wild boar and “Cabra de Monte” (Iberian Ibex).  Because we have plenty of water running through a barranco that borders our land and we have let a fair portion of this land go over to briar and willow, we have a great habitat not just for birds but somewhere safe for the cabra and boar to hold up during the day.  

On this last trip we were visited each evening by a young fox. The water channels that we have dug across the land distributing our excess water attract frogs and toads and we saw the fox stalking them on several occasions.

International Mountain Leaders are trained not only to lead and keep you safe in the mountains, but also in environmental interpretation. The guides at Sierra Nevada Guides are all qualified International Mountain Leaders.  Never book with a guide who claims to be "experienced" make sure they are fully qualified, your life may depend on it!