Lanzarote: An Extraordinary Natural Paradise

Lanzarote and its northerly islets are home to a tremendously rich marine life, benefiting from proximity to the Saharan upwelling zone and the resulting nutrient-rich waters that attract many pelagic species, including turtles, dolphins and migratory seabirds. Crevice-filled volcanic reefs surrounding the islands host a fascinating array of sponges, corals, echinoderms and crustaceans, whilst shallow, sandy seagrass beds offer shelter and a source of food to fish and invertebrates.

Many species are classified as vulnerable however, with some facing a very high risk of extinction. Some of the greatest risks to their survival include the increasing amount of plastic flotsam, the disturbance of nesting sites and marine pollution. This map sets out some of the areas of particular ecological importance and sensitivity to help ensure that particular care is taken when visiting or travelling through these sites.

1. The Chinijo Archipelago

The Chinijo Archipelago encompasses one of the most extensive marine fishery reserves in Europe, covering over 700km². Its exclusive marine biodiversity, with a high percentage of endemic species that live amongst this wide representation of the island’s most characteristic natural habitats and ecosystems, makes this the Canaries’ most important protected area. Corals, sea fans, molluscs and crustaceans inhabit the rocky seabed; there are large populations of sea bream, grouper and barred hogfish, and the uninhabited islets offer an ideal nesting ground for numerous seabirds and birds of prey. The reserve is also of particular interest as a key transit point for migratory turtles, seabirds and cetaceans.

2. La Bocaina

A stretch of barely 11km of water, separating the islands of Lanzarote and Fuerteventura, this area is of vital importance to sea birds and harbours valuable endemic plant species, animal life and geomorphologic elements of significant scientific interest. Maerl beds, brown algae forests and seagrass meadows converge across the sea floor, providing shelter to an outstanding biodiversity including turtle and cetacean populations whilst the Bocaina also comprises an established waypoint for pelagic fish such as tuna and marlin.

3. Banco de la Concepción

Located to the northeast of Lanzarote, this area marks a 55km-wide seamount rising from a depth of 2.5km to between 170 and 200m. Its proximity to the African coast and local upwelling systems bring nutrient-rich deep waters to the area, sustaining a high level of biodiversity and contributing to the existence of great concentrations of pelagic species such as turtles, cetaceans, sharks, seabirds, together with a great array of demersal species and invertebrates.

4. Cagafrecho

This area is characterised by a volcanic shelf running parallel to the coast that offers areas of refuge via caves, underwater gullies and sandy seagrass beds. The reef is populated by a great many species including angelsharks, stingrays, groupers and occasionally loggerhead sea turtles and bottlenose dolphins. Seagrasses are marine plants with long, narrow leaves that can produce extensive meadows in shallow waters; their root structure helping to protect the sandy seabed from erosion. They provide food and a sheltered habitat for a great variety of fish, reptiles, invertebrates, molluscs and mammals – especially juveniles. Little Neptune grass is the most abundant species in the Canarias although these plants are very sensitive to a reduction in water transparency caused by marine contamination and also from damage to the seabed due to trawling or anchoring.

Species of interest

Loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta)

Up to six turtle species have been identified in the Canaries, the loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta) being the most prolific. Local coastal areas provide a source of food and an area of development for juveniles and subadults, proceeding from American and Cape Verde nesting populations. Their diet is mostly carnivorous, based on molluscs, crustaceans, echinoderms, fish and jellyfish – the latter often confused with floating plastic bag refuse. Loggerhead turtles have been catalogued as being endangered in both community waters and worldwide.

Photo credit: © A. de Sostoa, X. Ferrer – CENEAM

Common dolphin (Delphinus delphis)

The short-beaked common dolphin is one of the most abundant cetaceans in the North Atlantic and easily recognised with its dark back, white belly and noticeably yellow curved stripe on its side. Regretfully, humans represent their greatest threat, through marine contamination, capturing animals for aquariums or via bycatch in fishing nets.

Photo credit: © Liz Motler

White-faced storm petrel (Pelagodroma marina)

Storm petrels are the smallest of all seabirds and despite their fragile appearance, fly remarkable distances. They spend most of their lives at sea, coming in to land purely to breed. Of the six identified subspecies of the white-faced storm petrel, the P.m. hypoleuca is endemic to Macaronesia and the only one known to inhabit European waters. In Spain, it nests purely in the Canaries, on the islands of Alegranza and Montaña Clara and possibly also on La Graciosa and Lobos.

Photo credit: © Aurelio Martín – SEO Birdlife

Bryde’s whale (Balaenoptera brydei)

This magnificent mammal can be observed relatively easily in the Canaries. It has a long, slender body, reaching lengths of nearly 15m and is characterised by three distinctive ridges running from the mouth to the blowhole. This whale feeds on fish, squid and krill, which it filters through keratinised baleen plates in its mouth. A mounted skeleton of a Bryde’s whale found washed up in the islands, can be seen in the Charco de San Gines in Arrecife. One of the principal threats to many cetaceans is collision with shipping.

Photo credit: © Liz Motler

Angelshark (Squatina squatina)

The angelshark is a critically endangered species. This fascinating fish with its flattened appearance can measure up to 1.6m metres in length when fully grown. They spend much of their time resting on the sea floor or half-buried where they remain camouflaged in order stalk prey. Of the three species of angelshark known to inhabit eastern Atlantic waters, Squatina squatina is the most widespread, with the majority of sightings registered in the eastern islands.

Photo credit: © Joaquín G. Vera – CAS Pastinaca

Wild Atlantic spotted dolphin (Stenella frontalis)

This photo, taken in front of Puerto Calero shows an adult spotted dolphin. Not all of these cetaceans have mottled skin, which develops with age; juveniles being easily confused with the bottlenose dolphin. Together with the common dolphin, it is one of the most frequently sighted in the Canarias and is known as being gregarious and sociable. Its keen curiosity in passing boats is notable and they can often be seen bow-riding – to the delight of sailors! (Please read guidelines below).

Photo credit: © Mónica Pérez – Ceamar

Cory’s shearwater (Calonectris diomedea)

This large hook-beaked seabird inhabits the neritic zone or open ocean waters where they group together to form extensive rafts. The borealis subspecies breeds across all of the Canary Islands, although the islet of Alegranza, within the Chinijo Archipelago, is home to the largest breeding colony of this species in the world. Despite being a protected species, it is not invulnerable to threats, one of these being from hunters illegally stealing chicks. WWF España runs a volunteer programme, started back in 1998, that serves to protect the main nesting areas on the islets.

Common stingray – (Dasyatis pastinaca)

This elasmobranch of the Order Rajiformes, commonly known as a stingray, is relatively common along these coasts. It inhabits sandy or muddy shallows. The circular-shaped body incorporates pectoral fins and its tail, which can extend to a length greater than that of its body, features a venomous barb on the underside. The stingray feeds on benthic fish and crustaceans and like angelsharks, they are “aplacental viviparous”, meaning that they give birth to live young, hatched from eggs inside the mother. A hatch can comprise between 4 to 7 young after an incubation period of four months.

Be a citizen scientist!

• Register your marine wildlife observations with the RedPROMAR app: www.redpromar.com
• Register and clean up rubbish floating on the sea or in coastal areas with the Debris Tracker – www.marinedebris.engr.uga.edu

Calero Marinas wishes to thank the very many people and organisations, whose enthusiasm, generosity and learning helped create this project.

– WWF España

– RedPROMAR

– Ceamar

– SEO Birdlife

– CENEAM

– C.A.S. Pastinaca

Also Whale Watch Lanzarote and the crews of Sea Dragon, SY Pelerin and SY Orion of Aberdeen.