Lago de Banyoles

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Lago de Banyoles

  • Country: 
    Spain
  • Site number: 
    1257
  • Area: 
    1,033 ha
  • Designation date: 
    20-12-2002
  • Coordinates: 
    42°07'N 02°46'E
Materials presented on this website, particularly maps and territorial information, are as-is and as-available based on available data and do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Secretariat of the Ramsar Convention concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.

Overview

Lago de Banyoles. 20/12/02; Cataluña; 1,033 ha; 42°08'N 002°46'E. Protected Natural Area. The main part (999 ha) consists of the upstream freshwater lake adjacent to Banyoles town (15,000 inhabitants) and its forested water catchment basin. Within the site, the lake itself, the small marshes Lagunas del Vilar y de las Guixeres, and the inflowing rivers Castellana y de la Puda cover together 132 ha. The site includes also a separate part (34 ha) of the catchment of the Laguna de Espolla pool. It is one of the best examples of a karst catchment on the Iberian peninsula. The local sulphur, iron and carbon cycles support characteristic bacterial communities. A rich and diverse aquatic vegetation of permanent and temporary pools and the associated fauna contribute to the environmental importance of the site. The turtles Emys orbicularis and Mauremys leprosa and the fish Barbus meridionalis are of EC interest. Human activities include tourism and recreation in most of the wetland area, except a few inaccessible parts. Small-scale farming and livestock rearing takes place in the surroundings. Ramsar site no. 1257. Most recent RIS information: 2002.

Administrative region: 
Cataluña

  • National legal designation: 
    • Plan Especial de Protección (PEIN)
  • Regional (international) legal designations: 
    • EU Natura 2000
  • Last publication date: 
    20-12-2002

Downloads

Ramsar Information Sheet (RIS)

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