Timanfaya National Park

The combination of the different magmatic processes, both in terms of age, extension and vegetation development, results in a certain spatial heterogeneity that is manifested in the different environmental units listed below:

Cones and Hornitos: this is made up of a group of volcanic edifices and similar small structures, characterised by their steeply sloping walls where vegetation is reduced to the presence of lichens. This habitat, which covers 20% of the Park’s surface area, is one of the preferred nesting sites for birds due to its inaccessibility. Sea of lava: as a whole it is made up of an extensive surface of different types of lava with very slight slopes, presenting an irregular surface with a large number of caves, tubes and cavities. It covers approximately 70% of the Park and the existing vegetation is reduced to the lichen community that covers large areas of this biotope. Tabaibal: covers the ancient surfaces that were not covered by recent lava. The El Mojón tabaibal stands out, with a vegetation cover of 75-80%. If we add to its botanical value the capacity to house the best representations of the fauna that populates the Park, we find ourselves in an area of great importance for the National Park. Crops: framed in the environment of ancient lava and made up of small areas located on the southern and eastern limits of the Park, where small-scale fruit crops sustained by human labour are grown. Beaches and cliffs: a small strip of land along the coast of the Park, on its western boundary. Terrestrial vegetation is scarce, restricted to species of a markedly halophilic nature. This biotope is home to important bird populations. From this general classification, an overall view can be drawn of the different environments within the boundaries of Timanfaya National Park. However, from a more exhaustive point of view, the following differentiation can be made:

Lava environment. This includes the extensive area of lava and volcanic ash emitted in the historic eruptions of 1730-36 and 1824. Ancient lava environment. This includes the ancient surfaces that were not covered by the recent lavas. In Lanzarote they are usually called “Islotes” although they are internationally known by the term “Kipuka”. Cave environment. It occupies the entire deep subsoil of both recent and older lavas. These three essential environments are not discrete units but overlap each other. Within each of these, minor units can be distinguished, such as: Coastal halophilic Lavic Habitat. From the upper limit of the supralittoral zone to a dozen metres inland. It therefore excludes the intertidal fringe, which will be discussed in the marine ecosystems.

Inland halophilic Lavicola habitat. From the upper limit of the previous habitat to several hundred metres inland, where the action of the tidewater is still noticeable. Inland Lavicola habitat. From the upper limit of the previous habitat onwards, always inland. Coastal Islet Habitat. From the upper limit of the supralittoral zone to a dozen metres inland, just where the phanerogams begin to dominate. Inland Islet Habitat. From the upper limit of the above habitat onwards. Inland Cave Habitat. At the mouth of the caves, from the area where sunlight ceases to fall directly to where all light disappears. Deep Cave Habitat. From the deepest limit of the previous habitat, to the deepest parts of the caves where darkness is always absolute.

From a geological point of view, the coastline of Timanfaya National Park is a good example of the persistence of two antagonistic processes that condition the modelling of the exposed coasts of the Canary Islands: on the one hand, the creation of new coastline by land reclaimed from the sea during eruptions, and on the other, the strong erosion to which it is subjected due to the effect of waves.

The main formations that can be observed on the coastline of the Timanfaya National Park are:

• Bufaderos or hervideros. Spectacular jets of water and foam caused in gorges through which the sea penetrates and violently lashes the coast of the Park.
• Bajas. Large rocks detached from the tongues of lava by marine erosion, which rise to the surface at a low height and remain continuously submerged during periods of high tide.
• Black beaches. Areas where there is an accumulation of sedimentary material; volcanic black sands are deposited due to marine currents.
• Slabs. Horizontally oriented and highly polished stone surfaces.

Of the main marine environments typified for the Archipelago, the following are represented in the National Park:

• Supralittoral Floor: or splash zone, where organisms live that are never submerged but receive marine humidity. The most representative vegetation is cyanophyte algae of the genus Calothrix, while the fauna includes the mollusc Littorina, the water flea and the red crab. Characteristic of the area is the predominance of a highly exposed cliffy coastline, which produces a widening of the levels of this floor. The pools, which are like rock bathtubs that are filled with water at low tide, are small in size and may even disappear due to evaporation.
• Mesolittoral Level: in the National Park, the intertidal is short and not very representative due to the slope of the seabed and the stressful environmental conditions. The typical tidal zone is that of callaos or cliffs with small steps. In the rocky areas, the vegetation is dominated by cespitose algae (Gelidium) and in the waterlogged areas the presence of Corallina sp. and Jania sp. is notable. As for the fauna, we can find burgados, chuchangas and limpets; in the pools we can find shrimps and cabosos.
• Infralittoral level: this zone includes organisms that are always submerged and whose limit is that which is compatible with life. As a consequence of homogeneous environmental conditions, the communities that occupy this zone are very stable.

The geographical situation of the Canary Islands, close to the African and Atlantic-European coasts, and the fact that it is located in the passage of the descending branch of the Gulf Stream (Canary cold current), make the archipelago a crossroads of influences, which means that its flora and fauna include species of very diverse origins. With these conditions, it is easy to deduce that the coast of the Park can offer a large number of possibilities for the study of the different settlements that make up the area. The arrangement of the strips and the way the vegetation grows is representative of this type of rocky coastline, which is basaltic in nature and very exposed. A total of 105 species of marine plants have been inventoried, representing 21% of the total benthic flora of the archipelago.

This National Park represents the recent volcanism in the Canary Islands and includes almost a quarter of the area affected by the eruptions of the 18th century, in a process that extended from 1730 to 1736. The core where the most important eruptions were recorded is the so-called Fire Mountains or Timanfaya, where more than 25 craters can be found in a space of just a few square kilometres. After a period of calm, a second phase of eruptions took place in 1824, giving rise to the formation of the Tinguaton, Tao and Chinero volcanoes, the latter of which is located within the boundaries of the Timanfaya National Park. The maximum exponent of this type of volcanic eruptions make this park a unique place in the world. It brings together a set of geomorphological structures of great diversity which the climate has helped to preserve, as the weather does not have a decisive influence on them. The main structures are very varied, the following being of particular volcanological interest:

• Hornitos: secondary eruptive mouths through which lava and gases were expelled without forming large volcanic edifices. The most characteristic hornito in Timanfaya National Park is the “Manto de la Virgen”.
• Volcanic tubes: volcanic tunnels of varying lengths originating from rivers (lava flows) of fluid lava which, after solidifying on the surface, continue to flow inside, giving rise to underground rivers of lava. Once the lava emission ends, the lava level inside the tube drops until it disappears, forming a volcanic tunnel. Sometimes part of the roof of these tubes collapse due to instability, forming hollows called “jameos”.
• Sea of lavas: extensive surfaces covered with lavas of different types, some of which are called “aa” type lavas, very viscous, which when cooled form a rough, rugged and impassable surface known as “malpais”, and others called “pahoe-hoe”, more fluid, which present a smooth surface or with certain roughness that form the so-called “cordadas”.
• Cones de cínder: volcanic edifices covered entirely by deposits of small volcanic material (pyroclasts. Pyro= fire; clasto= fragment) and corresponding to the last eruptive phases of the volcano (Strombolian phase).

Lanzarote’s climate is sub-desert, characterised by the absence of a wet season, with a rainfall of no more than 200 mm, but with frequent series of 3 or 4 years in which rainfall barely reaches 60 mm, a high average annual temperature (20.2ºC) and a considerable day-night temperature range (9.1ºC).

Rainfall is usually torrential and concentrated in a few hours. This scarcity of rainfall is cushioned by the presence of sea winds, which affect soils capable of retaining a large part of the humidity, and by strong nocturnal sprays that provide sufficient quantities of water for the survival of many plants.

One of the main characteristics of Timanfaya National Park is the lack of water. There is no permanent, intermittent or seasonal watercourse, nor are there any ponds or groundwater. This is due to the sub-desert climate of the island of Lanzarote, its prolonged summer and annual droughts, the special orography of the island and the nature of the volcanic materials, which are not very consolidated.