Nature
Birdlife is extremely diverse in the region and many indigenous animals plants and trees flourish on the hills around our villa and in the nearby Sierra Maria pargue naturel. Recently we disturbed an enormous Eagle Owl devouring its prey. Bee-Eaters are very common between May and August. They have amazingly colourful plumage and a distinctive babbling ’pruuupp’ call. They are often seen in flocks, circling and gliding in pursuit of insects. Another distinctive migrant is the Hoopoe bird which has a slow butterfly-like flight pattern. This black, white and pinky brown bird has a song like a trisyllabic "oop-oop-oop". When disturbed it has an erectile crest of barred pink feathers. Imperial Eagles are common. Hollyoak and Spanish oak still cling to hillsides with the dramatic Agarve cacti giving local identity and functioning in years gone by to ’process’ human waste.
  
Above the tree line in the Sierra Maria pargue naturel, golden, booted and short- toed eagles can be seen soaring on thermals. The marked trails give easy access to walkers. The lower slopes support extensive forests of aleppo and larico pine, interspersed with Scots pine and small patches of juniper, maple and holm oak; home to wildcats, red squirrels as well as eagle owls. Sierra de Maria is also renowned for its butterfly fauna, particularly at high altitudes.
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