Somiedo Natural Park

The UNESCO declared Somiedo Strict Nature Reserve a Biosphere Reserve in 2000. The landscape of Somiedo is characteristic of the ecosystems of the Cantabrian Mountains. This park is known, above all, for being a benchmark for brown bear conservation in Western Europe.

Somiedo is located in the south of the Principality of Asturias and its territory coincides with that of the municipality of the same name. The park is located in the so-called “Humid Iberia,” whose most notable climatic characteristics are cool summers, humid air, abundant cloud cover and frequent rainfall. The climate has given rise to rich vegetation, dominated by beech forests, along with groves of sessile oak, Pyrenean oak, birch, cool valley-bottom woodlands, alder stands and holm oak forests. As for the fauna, it is very similar to that of other parts of the Cantabrian Mountains. In fact, all the large mammals of the mountain range can be found in the natural park, along with a large number of small mammal species, more than one hundred birds and around twenty amphibians and reptiles. Particularly interesting are the populations of brown bears, wolves and otters.