GREDOS IBEX

GREDOS IBEX

GREDOS IBEX

The Sierra de Gredos forms part of the Sistema Central, together with the Sierra de Guadarrama, that cuts across the centre of Spain from the North East of Madrid towards the border of Portugal, running in a Northeast to Southwest direction. They form a barrier between the Mesetas, the higher plains of northern Castile (now known as Castilla y Leon) and the lower plains of southern Castile (Castilla La Mancha) and Extremadura. The Sierra de Gredos is a beautiful mountain range with peaks reaching up to nearly 2600ms, starting at the Cerro de Guisando in the East and stretching some 135 kms to the West. It offers a variety of terrains, ecosystems and climates with a wealth of wildlife and nature, some of it unique to this area. The two faces of the Sierra, the South and the North, are very different, having very different terrains, ecosystems and climates. To the North is a high hanging valley dominated by the major peaks and cirques. To the South the Sierra de Gredos drops dramatically down to the River Tietar (Valle del Tietar and La Vera); with Almanzor at 2592m it forms a steep rocky barrier rising up to 2000ms above the valley floor.

The Gredos mountains are very accessible being approximately 2 hours from Madrid and Valladolid. hey are within reach of some of the most famous historical cities of Spain including 8 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, Ávila, Toledo, Salamanca, Segovia, Caceres, Guadalupe, Mérida, El Escorial, Plasencia, Trujillo.

DESCRIPTION

After the Beceite ibex, the Gredos ibex is the largest and darkest in color and has the largest horns. Typically, the horns are lyre-shaped with a pronounced curve and a spiral turn of more than 180 degrees. Horn thickness decreases progressively from the base to the very thin tip. While this is the typical Gredos horn conformation, other horn shapes may be found in this region and even in the same herd.