The Serra dos Ancares (

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

: ''Sierra de los Ancares'', also known as ''Sierra de Ancares'') is a

mountain range A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have aris ...

of the

Galician Massif The Galician Massif or Galician-Leonese Massif (, also known as ''Macizo Galaico-Leonés'') is a system of mountain ranges in the northwestern corner of the Iberian Peninsula. It is located in Galicia with its southeastern end reaching into the pr ...

in north-west

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

, extending in a south-westerly direction from the western end of the

Cantabrian Mountains The Cantabrian Mountains or Cantabrian Range () are one of the main systems of mountain ranges in Spain. They stretch for over 300 km (180 miles) across northern Spain, from the western limit of the Pyrenees to the Galician Massif ...

Asturias Asturias (; ; ) officially the Principality of Asturias, is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in northwest Spain. It is coextensive with the provinces of Spain, province of Asturias and contains some of the territory t ...

Geography

The range forms the boundary between the

autonomous communities The autonomous communities () are the first-level administrative divisions of Spain, created in accordance with the Spanish Constitution of 1978, with the aim of guaranteeing limited autonomy to the nationalities and regions that make up Spa ...

of Galicia and

Castile and León Castile and León is an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in northwestern Spain. Castile and León is the largest autonomous community in Spain by area, covering 94,222 km2. It is, however, sparsely populated, with a pop ...

. The highest point of the range is the Cuiña Peak at . Other notable peaks are Mustallar (1,935 m) and Miravalles (1,969 m). The smaller Serra do Courel lies south of this range, stretching parallel to it. The main trees in the range are

willow Willows, also called sallows and osiers, of the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 350 species (plus numerous hybrids) of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist soils in cold and temperate regions. Most species are known ...

and

European alder ''Alnus glutinosa'', the common alder, black alder, European alder, European black alder, or just alder, is a species of tree in the family Betulaceae, native to most of Europe, southwest Asia and northern Africa. It thrives in wet locations whe ...

close to water courses, as well as

chestnut The chestnuts are the deciduous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Castanea'', in the beech family Fagaceae. The name also refers to the edible nuts they produce. They are native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. Description ...

ash Ash is the solid remnants of fires. Specifically, ''ash'' refers to all non-aqueous, non- gaseous residues that remain after something burns. In analytical chemistry, to analyse the mineral and metal content of chemical samples, ash is the ...

common hazel ''Corylus avellana'', the common hazel, is a species of flowering plant in the birch family Betulaceae. The shrubs usually grow tall. The nut is round, in contrast to the longer filbert nut. Common hazel is native to Europe and Western Asia. Th ...

oak An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisp ...

and

common holly Brigitte Naggar, better known by her stage name Common Holly, is a Canadian musician from Montreal, Quebec. As Common Holly, Naggar has released two albums. History Naggar's first album, ''Playing House'', was released in 2017. The album was or ...

. Above there is brushland with

tree heath ''Erica arborea'', the tree heath or tree heather, is a species of flowering plant (angiosperms) in the heather family Ericaceae, native to the Mediterranean Basin and Ethiopia, Kenya and Tanzania in East Africa. It is also cultivated as an or ...

and

juniper Junipers are coniferous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Juniperus'' ( ) of the cypress family Cupressaceae. Depending on the taxonomy, between 50 and 67 species of junipers are widely distributed throughout the Northern Hemisphere as far south ...

. This area of Spain contains many isolated rural communities that were largely cut off from the outside world until roads were built in the mid 20th century. The most significant element of the whole architecture of the area is the

palloza A palloza (also known as pallouza or pallaza) is a traditional dwelling of the Serra dos Ancares of northwest Spain. Structure A palloza is a traditional thatched house as found in Leonese county of El Bierzo, Serra dos Ancares in Galicia, an ...

or ''casa

teito Teito (also Palhoça in Portugal and Palloza in Galicia) is an Asturian term that designates a type of stone dwelling with a thatched straw or broom roof, found in western Asturias, especially in the Somiedo and Oscos area, and also in Galici ...

'', stone buildings of ancient origin, with a circular or elliptical plan.

Ecology

Sierra de los Ancares is the name of a

Site of Community Importance A Site of Community Importance (SCI) is defined in the European Commission Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC) as a site which, in the biogeographical region or regions to which it belongs, contributes significantly to the maintenance or restoration at ...

in the

province of León León (, ; ; ; ) is a province of northwestern Spain in the northern part of the Region of León and in the northwestern part of the autonomous community of Castile and León. About one quarter of its population of 463,746 (2018) lives in the c ...

. ''Os Ancares Lucenses y Montes de Cervantes, Navia y Becerrea'' was declared a

UNESCO Biosphere Reserve Man and the Biosphere Programme (MAB) is an intergovernmental scientific program, launched in 1971 by UNESCO, that aims to establish a scientific basis for the 'improvement of relationships' between people and their environments. MAB engages w ...

in 2006. Os Ancares UNESCO-MAB Biosphere Reserve
/ref> Los Ancares Leoneses is also a biosphere reserve. File:Ancares lucenses (Lugo, Galicia, España) 09.JPG , Serra dos Ancares (Lugo) File:Ancares lucenses (Lugo, Galicia, España) 06.JPG, Serra dos Ancares (Lugo) File:Sierra de los Ancares (León, España) - lago en el camino hacia el Cuiña.JPG, Serra dos Ancares (León) File:Sierra de los Ancares (León, España) - vistas subiendo al Pico Miravalles.jpg, Serra dos Ancares (León)

References

External links

Los Ancares, a very special reserveValle De Ancares (Ancares Valley)
{{Authority control

Ancares The Serra dos Ancares (Spanish: ''Sierra de los Ancares'', also known as ''Sierra de Ancares'') is a mountain range of the Galician Massif in north-west Spain, extending in a south-westerly direction from the western end of the Cantabrian Mountains ...

Mountain ranges of Castile and León Mountain ranges of Galicia (Spain) Bien de Interés Cultural landmarks in the Province of Lugo Protected areas of Galicia (Spain)

Geography

Ecology

See also

References

External links