Fuerteventura, one of the Canary Islands off south-west Spain, was recently added to the list of world Biosphere Reserves. The decision was made in order to preserve the island’s fish stocks and rich marine life, as well as protect their natural environments.

The Fuerteventura reserve consists of not only the island’s beaches, the longest in the Archipelago, but also a strip of sea extending three to five nautical miles.

The site encompasses an array of ecosystems including desert and semi-desert as well as coastal and marine areas. Famed for the diversity of marine life (dolphins, sperm whales, sea turtles that reproduce on the beaches, etc), the island is also one of the foremost sites of geo-paleontological interest in the world.

Tarabilla (left). Hubara macho (right).

The island benefits from its natural wealth. Tourism is currently the principal source of income and an expanding industry, as seen in the growth of ornithological tourism. The island’s community is developing sustainably managed ecotourism.

Fuerteventura is the most ancient of the Canary Islands, the most arid and the closest to the African coast. It has a surface area of 1659 square kilometres and offers visitors impressive views of deep ravines, relics of its volcanic origins. The more than 300 kilometres of coast and innumerable vast beaches are among its defining characteristics.

Text: Ana Minondo, Spanish journalist
Photos : © UNESCO/Cabildo de Fuerteventura

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