The Guadalquivir Marshes (in es, Marismas del Guadalquivir or simply ''Las Marismas'') are a natural region of marshy lowlands on the lower Guadalquivir River. The ''Las Marismas'' zone forms a large part of the province of Huelva,

province of Seville The Province of Seville ( es, Sevilla) is a province of southern Spain, in the western part of the autonomous community of Andalusia. It is bordered by the provinces of Málaga, Cádiz in the south, Huelva in the west, Badajoz in the north and C ...

and

province of Cádiz Cádiz is a Provinces of Spain, province of southern Spain, in the southwestern part of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia. It is the southernmost part of mainland Spain, as well as the southernmost part of conti ...

in Andalucia, Spain. The area includes parts of the municipalities of Isla Mayor, Los Palacios y Villafranca, La Puebla del Río, Utrera,

Las Cabezas de San Juan Las Cabezas de San Juan ( es, Saint John's Hillocks) is a village and municipality located in the Bajo Guadalquivir ( es, Lower Guadalquivir) comarca, in Seville province, Andalusia, Spain. According to the 2009 census ( INE), the village ha ...

and Lebrija. Rice farming in this area produces 40% of Spain's national crop. Some areas are protected for wildlife and habitat, including dunes.

History

Approximately two millennia ago the wetlands comprised a large lagoon and estuary, known as ''Lacus Ligustinus'' in Latin, leading to the Guadalquivir

River mouth A river mouth is where a river flows into a larger body of water, such as another river, a lake/reservoir, a bay/gulf, a sea, or an ocean. At the river mouth, sediments are often deposited due to the slowing of the current reducing the carrying ...

with some sand bars to the South. Over time the lake silted up, gradually transforming into marshland. This silt has formed into a barrier of dunes extending approximately along the coast, known as ''Arenas Gordas'' (English: "the fat sands"). The marquessate de las Marismas del Guadalquivir is a Spanish noble title named after the area; this noble title was created by Royal Decree of King Ferdinand VII in 1829 for Alejandro María Aguado y Ramírez de Estenoz. In the early 21st century, the Guadalquivir wetland region's main economic activity is agriculture, specialising in the cultivation of rice. An area of about 400 km² is devoted to rice farming. It has an annual output of about 310,000 metric tonnes, equating to approximately 40% of Spain's rice production.

Protected area

The wetland zone acts as a

buffer zone A buffer zone is a neutral zonal area that lies between two or more bodies of land, usually pertaining to countries. Depending on the type of buffer zone, it may serve to separate regions or conjoin them. Common types of buffer zones are demil ...

between the human settlements of the Guadalquivir region and Doñana National Park, a

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...

of marshland,

stream A stream is a continuous body of water, body of surface water Current (stream), flowing within the stream bed, bed and bank (geography), banks of a channel (geography), channel. Depending on its location or certain characteristics, a stream ...

s, and

sand dune A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, fl ...

s. The National Park was established in 1969 as a nature reserve when the World Wildlife Fund joined forces with the Spanish Government to purchase a substantial part of the local wetlands in order to preserve them.

Fauna

The Las Marismas area is home to a large number of wildlife species. Commonly seen terrestrial animals include deer,

lynx A lynx is a type of wild cat. Lynx may also refer to: Astronomy * Lynx (constellation) * Lynx (Chinese astronomy) * Lynx X-ray Observatory, a NASA-funded mission concept for a next-generation X-ray space observatory Places Canada * Lynx, Ontar ...

, and wild boars. Notable avian species include vultures, flamingos, herons, spoonbills, and

ducks Duck is the common name for numerous species of waterfowl in the family Anatidae. Ducks are generally smaller and shorter-necked than swans and geese, which are members of the same family. Divided among several subfamilies, they are a form t ...

. The rare Spanish imperial eagle lives here, whose population is considered

vulnerable Vulnerable may refer to: General * Vulnerability * Vulnerability (computing) * Vulnerable adult * Vulnerable species Music Albums * ''Vulnerable'' (Marvin Gaye album), 1997 * ''Vulnerable'' (Tricky album), 2003 * ''Vulnerable'' (The Used album) ...

by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

References

External links

Coto de Doñana

Sanlúcar Central Bureau for Tourism
M Natural regions Landforms of Andalusia Wetlands of Spain {{Andalusia-geo-stub

History

Protected area

Fauna

See also

References

External links