COTO DOÑA ANA


One of Europe`s top wetlands, the Coto Doñana is best known as a major staging post for birds migrating to and from Africa. But it is also a breeding ground and residence for many others, as well as the home for the rare Iberian lynx, among other animals, reptiles and plants.

These wetlands, which cover an area of 300sq miles, are a stranded part of the delta of the river Guadalquivir, cut off by the formation over the centuries of a vast natural sandbar. In spring and autumn, the Coto Doñana becomes the scene of some of the best bird watching in Europe, when thousands of birds converge on the marsh. Visitors can expect to see Great Spotted Cuckoos, Glossy Ibis, Spoonbills, Marsh Harriers, Great Flamingos and Golden Orioles to mention just a few. If you`re really lucky, you might catch sight of a Spanish imperial eagle, which nest in the cork oak forests.

The marsh at the heart of the park is strictly protected. There are no main roads through it and to enter it you must take an official guided tour. But there is also good bird and animal-spotting in the publicly accessible areas surrounding the marshes, taking in the giant, shifting dunes behind the Playa de Castilla and their valleys, the corrales, the woodlands and grasslands beyond, known as the cotos and vera.

Four-hour tours are available at 8:30am and 3pm throughout the year, except Mondays in winter, from the visitors` center at El Acebuche. They must be booked in advance through the information center.