__NOTOC__ The Bidasoa (, ; french: Bidassoa, ) is a river in the

Basque Country Basque Country may refer to: * Basque Country (autonomous community), as used in Spain ( es, País Vasco, link=no), also called , an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain (shown in pink on the map) * French Basque Country o ...

of northern

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' ( Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

and southern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...

that runs largely south to north. Named as such downstream of the village of Oronoz-Mugairi (municipality of Baztan) in the province of

Navarre Navarre (; es, Navarra ; eu, Nafarroa ), officially the Chartered Community of Navarre ( es, Comunidad Foral de Navarra, links=no ; eu, Nafarroako Foru Komunitatea, links=no ), is a foral autonomous community and province in northern Spain, ...

, the river actually results from the merger of several streams near the village ''Erratzu'', with the stream Baztan that rises at the north-eastern side of the mount Autza (1,306 m) being considered the source of the Bidasoa. It joins the

Cantabrian Sea The Cantabrian Sea; french: Mer Cantabrique, gl, Mar Cantábrico, ast, Mar Cantábricu, eu, Kantauri. is the term used mostly in Spain to describe the coastal sea of the Atlantic Ocean that borders the northern coast of Spain and the southwes ...

(

Bay of Biscay The Bay of Biscay (), known in Spain as the Gulf of Biscay ( es, Golfo de Vizcaya, eu, Bizkaiko Golkoa), and in France and some border regions as the Gulf of Gascony (french: Golfe de Gascogne, oc, Golf de Gasconha, br, Pleg-mor Gwaskogn), ...

) between the towns of

Hendaye Hendaye ( Basque: ''Hendaia'')HENDAIA
Hondarribia es, fuenterribense , population_note = , population_density_km2 = auto , blank_name_sec1 = Official language(s) , blank_info_sec1 = Basque, Spanish , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , t ...

. The river is best known for establishing the borderline at its lower tract. This stretch is crossed not only by aircraft at low height but by important European communication axes, namely AP8 E5 E80 - E70 A63 (motorway, connection at the Biriatu toll), main roads N1 - N10 (connection at the roundabout of ''Saizar'' by the river) and major French and Spanish railway networks,— RENFE and SNCF. Besides these major lines, other regional ones cross it too, e.g. regional railway

EuskoTren Euskotren, formally known as Basque Railways ( eu, Eusko Trenbideak, es, Ferrocarriles Vascos), is a public railway company controlled by the Basque Government and officially established in 1982 to operate several narrow gauge railways inside ...

(terminus in

Hendaye Hendaye ( Basque: ''Hendaia'')HENDAIA
and another double bridge (pedestrians/vehicles) joining the towns on the border, i.e. the historical Santiago Bridge ( Way of St. James). At this stage of the river, urban landscape prevails (built-up area). Before pouring its waters into the ocean, it forms a bay called Txingudi located between these towns and

Irun Irun ( es, Irún, eu, Irun) is a town of the Bidasoaldea region in the province of Gipuzkoa in the Basque Autonomous Community, Spain. History It lies on the foundations of the ancient Oiasso, cited as a Roman-Vasconic town. During the Span ...

, the site being designated ''Wetland of International Importance'' in 2002, with a total area of . The banks of

Hondarribia es, fuenterribense , population_note = , population_density_km2 = auto , blank_name_sec1 = Official language(s) , blank_info_sec1 = Basque, Spanish , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , t ...

hold the minor '' San Sebastian Airport'' serving domestic flights and currently mired in controversy over its lengthening and upgrading scheme.

Pronunciation and etymology

The river comprises an area of linguistic contact, so it is pronounced differently depending on the language, namely in

Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous c ...

, in

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: ** Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Ca ...

, and in

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

. Linguistic and historic research point to the name stemming from

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...

phrase "Via ad Oiassonem" (later corrupting into Basque "Bidasoa") on account of the road that linked at Roman times

town Pompaelo with Oiasso, which may have run along the river.

Course of the river and tributaries

The Bidasoa flows through much of its length over

se territory, except for the last , where it establishes the borderline between France and Spain, as well as the boundary between the

provinces of

Gipuzkoa Gipuzkoa (, , ; es, Guipúzcoa ; french: Guipuscoa) is a province of Spain and a historical territory of the autonomous community of the Basque Country. Its capital city is Donostia-San Sebastián. Gipuzkoa shares borders with the French de ...

and

Labourd Labourd ( eu, Lapurdi; la, Lapurdum; Gascon: ''Labord'') is a former French province and part of the present-day Pyrénées Atlantiques ''département''. It is one of the traditional Basque provinces, and identified as one of the territorial c ...

. In line with the distribution of the river's length, the bulk of its watershed's area lies on

(). The basin holds 105 permanent streams and rivers that number , the region being drenched in rains regularly. The Navarrese side of the basin (rural landscape) is inhabited by 22,000 inhabitants. 70% of its population have the sewage treated before spilling to the river. But for the first 15-odd kilometres, the river clings to the north to south disposition of other neighbouring rivers of Gipuzkoa joining the

, e.g. Urumea, Oria, etc. Strengthened by the waters harvested from the sides of the pass of Belate, downstream of Doneztebe the river heads north and crosses the town of Bera at the north end of Navarre before entering Gipuzkoa at Endarlatsa. From the town of Doneztebe on, the main road N-121 runs along till the roundabout across the river from the toll of Biriatu by the AP-8 (motorway). Next comes the quarter Behobia and the major towns on the shores of the estuary. The main tributaries of the Bidasoa are the minor rivers Zeberia (length ), Ezkurra (), Latsa () and Endara (). Additionally, further small rivers and streams feed the Bidasoa all along.

Fishing and environmental challenges

Cohaya on the Bidassoa 1824 Edward Hawke Locker

The Navarrese tract of the river is a preferred destination for fishing enthusiasts, the river being home to several native fish species, namely eel (''Anguilla anguilla''),

salmon Salmon () is the common name In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of ...

(''Salmo palar''),

trout Trout are species of freshwater fish belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', '' Salmo'' and '' Salvelinus'', all of the subfamily Salmoninae of the family Salmonidae. The word ''trout'' is also used as part of the name of some non-sa ...

(''Salmo trutta''), bullhead (''Cottus gobio''), ''Barbatula barbatula'', '' Phoxinus phoxinus'',

gudgeon A gudgeon is a socket-like, cylindrical (i.e., '' female'') fitting attached to one component to enable a pivoting or hinging connection to a second component. The second component carries a pintle fitting, the male counterpart to the gudgeon, ...

(''Gobio lozanoi''),

sea lamprey The sea lamprey (''Petromyzon marinus'') is a parasitic lamprey native to the Northern Hemisphere. It is sometimes referred to as the "vampire fish". Description The sea lamprey has an eel-like body without paired fins. Its mouth is jawless, ...

(''Petromyzon marinus''), allis shad (''Alosa alosa''),

flounder Flounders are a group of flatfish species. They are demersal fish, found at the bottom of oceans around the world; some species will also enter estuaries. Taxonomy The name "flounder" is used for several only distantly related species, tho ...

(''Platichthys flesus'') and grey mullet (''Chelon labrosus''), some of them declared endangered species and highly interesting (especially bullhead and salmon). Moreover, a species of the

Ebro , name_etymology = , image = Zaragoza shel.JPG , image_size = , image_caption = The Ebro River in Zaragoza , map = SpainEbroBasin.png , map_size = , map_caption = The Ebro ...

, ''

Chondrostoma miegii ''Parachondrostoma miegii'' is a species of cyprinid fish endemic to Spain, where it occurs in the basin of the Ebro and in one headwater of the Tagus. Its natural habitat is rivers. It is threatened by habitat loss Habitat destruction (als ...

'', has been introduced in the last 30–40 years on the lower tract of the Bidasoa, thereafter extending gradually upstream. As a result, overfishing has become a major problem for the river's fauna, with special pressure put on salmon migrating upstream to spawn. They do not make it to their goal and die before spawning, either falling prey to fishers' bait or an inability to overcome hydroelectric power stations (128 over all the course) and the 114 related dams, since 63% of them prevent migratory fish from achieving their purpose. Schemes by the Regional Government of Navarre are underway with a view to handling the issue.

Footnotes

References

Report on the Environmental State of the Bidasoa by the Basque Regional Govt (site in Spanish)Report for Correction Measures on the Bidasoa (link to Pdf, site in Spanish)Briefing on the Bidasoa by an Agency of the Navarrese Regional Govt (site in Spanish)
*Bidaso
Txingudi
{{Authority control Bidasoa Rivers of Navarre Rivers of the Basque Country (autonomous community) International rivers of Europe Gipuzkoa France–Spain border Rivers of Nouvelle-Aquitaine Rivers of Pyrénées-Atlantiques Rivers of Spain Border rivers

Pronunciation and etymology

Course of the river and tributaries

Fishing and environmental challenges

See also

Footnotes

References