A varied avifauna
Sandwiched between Europe and Africa, the island is home to over 210 bird species. The wetlands of Estany des Peix, Estany Pudent and the salt marshes provide a nesting haven for a multitude of bird species. Included in the Natura 2000 network, Formentera has several Special Protection Areas dedicated to birds. It's in the heart of the salt flats that you'll find the greatest number of specimens. Depending on the habitat - ponds, coasts, mountains or rocks - a fascinating ornithological variety flourishes, from passerines (warblers, goldfinches, blackbirds and the cheerful hoopoe) to majestic waders (flamingos, herons, storks...), birds of prey (falcons and eagles) and water birds (pelicans, gulls, seagulls). Every year, migratory birds from Africa and northern Europe come to nest in the lagoons to the north of the island, Formentera being on one of the world's main migratory routes.
The endemic sargantana pitiusa
The sargantana, also known as sargantana pitiusa(Podarcis pityusensis), is an endemic lizard of the Pityuse Islands, with over thirty subspecies listed. Formentera's lizards vary in color according to their habitat, ranging from blue (mainly in wooded areas) to green (at La Mola, for example), brown or white (on the beaches). These reptiles, larger than those of the Iberian Peninsula, feed on insects and plant matter. They are now threatened with extinction, notably due to the proliferation of non-endemic snakes.
An aquatic refuge
The island is renowned for the beauty of its seabed. Its typically Mediterranean fauna likes to lurk in the posidonia meadows, where it draws abundant food. Underwater, you'll see hundreds of black castagnoles, a fish with an oval silhouette, black livery and forked tail, found in the Mediterranean and Atlantic, as well as common sars, barracudas, moray eels, groupers, red scorpion fish, conger eels, amberjacks, and species typical of the subterranean sandy plains, such as rays, uranoscope, stingrays and large livebearers. You'll also encounter octopus, squid, cuttlefish, seahorses and countless crustaceans!
The Posidonia, treasure of the sea bed
Posidonia oceanica is not an algae, but a flowering plant. Nearly 100 million years ago, it adapted from a terrestrial to an oceanic environment. Endemic to the Mediterranean, it forms what are known as Posidonia "meadows" or "seagrass beds". Considered true ecosystem engineers, they play an essential ecological role on the Mediterranean coast. Although they extend over a large part of the Mediterranean, the Posidonia meadows concentrated in the Ses Salines nature reserve, between Ibiza and Formentera, are among the best preserved in the region. Posidonia plays a crucial role in oxygenating the waters, contributing to the rich biodiversity of its ecosystem. It's even said that one square metre of posidonia produces more oxygen than one square metre of Amazon rainforest!
Save Posidonia Project
The United Nations has proclaimed 2017 the "International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development". It's in this context that the Save Posidonia Project was born, a pioneering micro-crowdfunding (participatory financing) project dedicated to the conservation of Mediterranean Posidonia off Formentera. The principle is simple: each participant can become the "sponsor" of one square metre or more of Posidonia (€1/m²). The funds raised are then entirely dedicated to the preservation of this very special flora, and over 250,000 m² of Posidonia have already been sponsored (2021). If you'd like to find out more or sponsor a plot of Posidonia, visit www.saveposidoniaproject.org.
Mediterranean flora
Modest size, low relief and a Mediterranean climate explain the very special nature of Formentera's flora. Its habitats are varied, ranging from coastal areas to wetlands, rocky landscapes and the forested areas of La Mola and Cap de Barbaria.
In the forest, the Aleppo pine(Pinus halepensis), which is very small compared with those that thrive in the rest of the archipelago, and the sabina juniper (Juniperus sabina), a hardy, fragrant shrub with needles and purplish berries, dominate the plant cover. These species are perfectly adapted to the calcareous, sandy soil. Juniper wood is abundant and was used as a building material by the Formenterencs. Shrubs such as thorny broom and thyme, much appreciated in Mediterranean cuisine, also thrive here. In spring, fragile orchids and other bulbous plants grow between the clearings. Botanists have identified seventeen native species of orchid on the island.
Since the abandonment of traditional agriculture, fruit trees have multiplied on cultivable land. Among them, the fig tree, originally from Asia, has become one of the island's symbols. To a lesser extent, there are also almond, olive, carob and lemon trees. The fields are also dotted with pretty wild flowers that bloom in spring (poppies, marigolds, daisies, gladioli...). Finally, there's the famous prickly pear, native to Mexico. Sometimes known as the "carpet cactus", it too has acclimatized perfectly to Mediterranean regions.
The dune vegetation is made up of grasses, birdsfoot trefoil (which produces yellow flowers in spring), maritime panicum, dune bindweed and beautiful, fragrant sea lilies. The sea cliffs are home to sea fennel(Crithmum maritimum), a perennial endemism nicknamed "sea fennel", and the abundant statice(Limonium algarvense). Finally, among the twenty or so endemic plants is the Delphinium pentagynum, currently protected. It is found nowhere else in the world!
