5 curiosities you should know about the Maspalomas Dunes
Gran Canaria is a unique place in many ways, but there is one specifically that attracts thousands of tourists every year: the Maspalomas Dunes. With many hidden secrets, these dunes are the result of a perfect process of sedimentation and erosion. Precisely, in this article we will talk about the curiosities of the Maspalomas Dunes.
If you are thinking of travelling to Gran Canaria soon and don’t want to miss out on the spectacular scenery and enjoy what nature has in store for you, then this article is for you. Read on and find out what Maspalomas and its famous dunes have to offer.
This spectacular formation holds many secrets. Here we take a look at some of them, which are curious and full of history and understanding of nature.
How were the Maspalomas Dunes formed? The dunes that we can enjoy in this enclave are formed by sediments. These come from the decomposition of some marine organisms, such as algae or shells, and from the erosion of volcanic rocks. But the process is not so simple. It is the sea currents themselves that deposit these sediments on the shores and the wind is the agent that moves them inland.
Once the wind moves them, certain types of flora cause these sediments to accumulate and form mounds, which grow as the flora holding these sediments grows and the wind carries more.
Another hypothesis about the formation of the Maspalomas Dunes is the tsunami of the Lisbon earthquake 266 years ago. According to this hypothesis defended by the researchers of the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC), there is scientific evidence that the dunes did not exist before 1,800 years ago and therefore did not form so long ago, and therefore differs from the oldest theory which states that the dunes were formed slowly over a period of 10,000 years.
The Maspalomas Dunes are a unique place in Gran Canaria. It has been a protected natural area since 1994. Throughout its 400 hectares we can find numerous species that are also protected. These include hoopoes, stonechats, little egrets and gallinules, parakeets, warblers, tridactyl sandpipers, kentish plovers, black-winged stilts, turtle doves and loggerhead shrikes. There is also an important reptile fauna, such as the Gran Canaria giant lizard.
As we told you in the previous point, we are talking about an area that has been protected for almost three decades. The vegetation landscape is made up of rare species that are a delight for visitors who love nature and, above all, botany. The Dunas de Maspalomas Special Nature Reserve, as it is known, has high floral, aesthetic and faunistic values that are difficult to match.
In addition to the fauna, the geosystem of Maspalomas is home to important plant species, such as gorse, bald cypress, naked sedge, tarajal, reed and phoenix canariensis, among others.
Although there are different versions of what happened, what is certain is that many historians, such as Antonio Romeu de Armas, Francisco Morales Padrón or Alejandro Cioranescu, affirm that Christopher Columbus was supplied with water (extracted from the pond) and firewood from this area of Maspalomas. This is also explained by the writer Alfredo Herrera Piqué in the book Las Palmas de Gran Canaria: Patrimonio histórico y cultural de una ciudad atlántica (Las Palmas de Gran Canaria: Historical and cultural heritage of an Atlantic city). In it, the author states that Columbus made this stop (the last) before leaving Gran Canaria for his voyage to the New World.
Within the solitary image of a landscape populated by dunes and only 200 metres from the Maspalomas Lighthouse, there is a saltwater lagoon that forms part of the oasis in the middle of the sand (or sediment). It is a saltwater pool full of birds around it. This is where many local and migratory species appear in search of insects and fish. Undoubtedly, a fully-fledged oasis to enjoy this unique sandy spot even more.
A symbol of the Canary Islands, the Maspalomas Lighthouse has witnessed how this area has become an important tourist centre. Surrounded by the dunes, the lighthouse has a history that begins in 1861, when the idea of its construction was born. But it was not until 1890 that it was finally inaugurated. It has a diameter of 6.20 metres and a height of 55 metres. The range of its lantern (measuring 3.7 metres in diameter) is up to 35 kilometres. Today, the lighthouse is more of a museum than a real landmark for ships.
If you are thinking of spending a few days enjoying this marvel of nature in Gran Canaria, we recommend that you stay at one of the hotels that the Lopesan Hotel Group has to pamper you. Thousands of tourists choose this option every year.
There are several hotels that can be ideal for your stay in the dunes and, of course, in the oasis in this special enclave.
There are many curiosities about the Maspalomas Dunes that you should know about if you are going to visit the area. In this article we tell you some of them, but the rest you should discover by yourself. Stay with the Lopesan Hotel Group and take part in a new adventure. What are you waiting for?
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