![]() ![]() One day during the week we will venture south to the magnificent gypsum pseudosteppes and ‘badlands’ of the Bardenas Reales Biosphere Reserve. On sunny days the skies above are rarely empty, with Griffon Vultures and Red and Black Kites the most commonplace raptors here. Monkey Orchid Orchis simia © Teresa FarinoĪmong the birds we might encounter in the grassland–scrub mosaic are Fan-tailed Warbler, Nightingale, Red-backed Shrike, Cuckoo, Spotless Starling and Cirl and Corn Buntings, with Iberian Woodpecker, Bonelli’s Warbler and Short-toed Treecreeper in more wooded habitats. The delightful Thalictrum tuberosum, Coris, Beautiful Flax, Meadow Clary, lemon-yellow Phlomis lychnitis, Blue Aphyllanthes and Grape-hyacinth provide a riot of colour on sunny slopes, while shady nooks are brightened by Yellow Pheasant’s-eye, Columbines and Dragon’s-teeth, and the diminutive scarlet Pheasant’s-eye grows in the margins of cultivated fields. Such a rich lepidopteran fauna is of course indicative of a diverse flora, with special mention going to a veritable ‘zoo’ of orchids in flower in May: Lizard, Monkey, Lady, Man, Lesser Butterfly, Woodcock, Early Spider and many more. One short walk we undertake during the week should reward us with literally hundreds of Swallowtails, Scarce Swallowtails and Spanish Festoons. Other species of interest here include Sage Skipper, Provence Orange Tip, Duke of Burgundy Fritillary and lycaenids such as Green-underside and Panoptes Blues, as well as, surprisingly, good numbers of Chalk-hill Blues. The butterflies are equally beguiling in this part of Navarra, the undisputed highlight being several colonies of Spanish Fritillary (see image at the top of the page), essentially an Afro–Iberian endemic species with a few outlying colonies in southern France. Spotted Sulphur Emmelia trabealis © Teresa FarinoĪmong the notable day-flying species here in May are White-collared Burnet ( Zygaena lavandulae), Crowned Moth ( Eurranthis plummistaria), Serrated Jewel ( Athroolopha pennigeraria), The Four-spotted ( Tyta luctuosa and Spotted Sulphur ( Emmelia trabealis), the latter probably extinct in the UK these days, the dinky little noctuid Omia cymbalariae and both Broad- and Narrow-Bordered Bee Hawk-moths ( Hemaris fuciformis & H. Species known mainly in the UK as migrants but commonly seen in the valley include Tawny Wave ( Scopula rubiginata), Porter's Rustic ( Athetis hospes) and Marbled Clover ( Heliothis viriplaca).Īdditional species of note previously recorded in the valley include Bright Wave ( Idaea ochrata), Pine-tree Lappet ( Dendrolimus pini), the endemic Iberian Puss Moth ( Cerura iberica), Argentine Moth ( Spatalia argentina), Emperor Moth ( Saturnia pavonia), the endemic tiger moth Chelis arragonensis, Purple Tiger ( Rhyparia purpurata) and the extremely rare and endangered Willowherb Hawk-moth ( Proserpinus proserpina). Other moths of interest that have come to our lights at this time of year include Giant Peacock ( Saturnia pyri), Small Lappet ( Phyllodesma ilicifolia nowadays extinct in the UK), The Javelin ( Drymonia velitaris), Southern Pine Hawk-moth ( Hyloicus maurorum) and geometrids such as The Many-lined ( Costaconvexa polygrammata) and Essex Emerald ( Thetidia smaragdaria), both of which are also thought to be extinct in the UK, plus Pale-banded Pine Carpet ( Adalbertia castiliaria, another pine-feeding species, found only in southern France and Spain). As might be expected, our visit is timed to coincide with the peak flight period of these magnificent creatures in Navarra, and we shall locate them using light traps. ![]() ![]() One of just a handful of European members of the Saturniidae, it occurs only in pinewoods in the western Alps and central and eastern Spain. Undoubtedly the most famous inhabitant of the region – and our prime target species – is the Spanish Moon Moth ( Actias isabellae, formerly known as Graellsia isabellae), perhaps Spain’s most emblematic invertebrate. Spanish Moon Moth Actias isabellae © Teresa Farino Although it lies only 80 km from the Atlantic coast of Spain, with the Pyrenees just a stone’s throw to the north-east, this part of Navarra benefits from a warm, almost Mediterranean climate, giving rise to a unique assemblage of flora and fauna, quite unlike that found anywhere else in Spain. Pamplona is situated at the heart of a mosaic of semi-natural grasslands and maquis on calcareous marls, interspersed with extensively farmed cereal fields, copses of deciduous forest and pinewoods. 1,300€ per person (single-room supplement 135euro ), excluding flights.Īll the images on this page were taken during previous May trips to this part of Navarra. ![]()
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