Dehesa (pastoral management)
Dehesa (Portuguese Montado ) is the Spanish term for grazed oak groves ( wood-pastures ), mainly in the south-western Spain (Autonomous Community of Extremadura and Andalusia ) and occupy large areas in Portugal. The Dehesa has traditionally been (similar to a common land) managed as common property in common; Today, the lands are often owned by the municipality.
Dehesa caused by the original stone and cork oak forests were grazed by cattle, sheep and goats. Through its extensive tillering with oaks the Dehesa allows the use as grazing land for the Iberian pig, which feeds on grasses and acorns. In the shallow soil, nutrient-poor soils in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula, the conditions for farming are bad, grazing is more worthwhile. Thus, park-like stands of trees emerged. The trees protect the soil from erosion, provide shade and the grazing animals provide for fattening estimated ( primarily pigs) acorns.
A special type of use, the Dehesa is in their old age - the oldest evidence of the dehesa dates back 4000 years. The people destroyed large parts of the denser forest stand ( primary forest ), as it still be around today in Monfragüe to get pastures. However, changes to the Dehesa was slow but steady and the human intervention is owed. It is not therefore aufwiese a landscape untouched by man shape that one of the potential natural vegetation appropriate plant community.
Dehesa serve as a model example of a natural cultural landscape: trees protect the soil, provide fuels (formerly made from the wood of holm oak charcoal) or cork and fodder for grazing animals. Nevertheless, the dehesa are endangered today because the traditional grazing animals are replaced by modern, more productive breeds whose food claim but must be covered by imported feed. Unused wood pastures can be seen at the upcoming Bushes.
The Dehesa of Extremadura today comprises 1.03 million hectares and covers a quarter of the area of the region ( 4.163 million hectares). In the province of Cáceres holm and cork oak stand on an area of 0.53 million hectares, in the province of Badajoz to 0.50 million hectares. This has given the dehesa in Extremadura by far the most widespread in Spain, where there are areas of 2.1 million hectares throughout the country. Also half of the Spanish cork and holm oaks growing in Extremadura. Outside the Iberian Peninsula, there are few dehesa or comparable savanna species.
However, the Dehesa cork oak trees and is home to not only the Iberian pig breed, but a diverse animal and plant life. A study from 1985 showed that in the Dehesa grow about 45 species of plants. Of the many species of birds of the Dehesa Blue Magpie is most affected by habitat -dependent. Among the common species include chaffinch, song thrush, blackbird and woodpecker who reside mainly in dense Bäumbeständen. Hoopoe, Bee-eater, Little Owl, Serin, Corn Bunting, Goldfinch, Rotkopfwürger and Woodlark hold on to the floor surfaces. The dehesa types that come up because of their small stands of trees on the steppes that form the habitat of Thekla Lark, Stone Curlew, Little Bustard and Southern Grey Shrike.
The white stork, which is mainly found in Spain as a breeding bird in Extremadura, benefited from the open vegetation and small animals of richly structured extensive cultural landscape. Most notable however, are the birds of prey circling in impressive numbers over the dehesa. Some breed in the Dehesa, others in the Mediterranean forests and nature parks and along rock walls. As a food serve alongside rabbits typical Dehesa residents as lizard, Moorish gecko lizards or snakes, which in turn feeds on the eggs of the hoopoe. They are the prey of griffon vulture, black vulture, Egyptian vulture, the black kite, red kite, golden eagle and the Spanish Imperial Eagle.