Cornalvo

Location 80.5 Kms SW of Trujillo on the E90/A5 in the dehesa near Merida (admission free).

At the park entrance there is a visitor centre where you can obtain maps. Use these maps to explore the numerous tracks and trails around the park.

Created in Roman Times, Cornalvo contains a large artificial lake ensuring Merida's water supply, which is also home to some unusual fish, such as the Anaecypris hispanica - jarabugo.

The park has a wealth of different habitats, ranging from dry dehesa to riparian areas, all of which support a huge variety of animals and plants. There are more than 155 different bird species in the park, some of which can be spotted from the purpose built hides on the shores of the Las Muelas reservoir, a ten minute drive north from the main reservoir.

Take time to look out for the large tadpoles of Iberian midwife toads and their serpentine predator, the viperine snake. In the early evening listen out for the distinctive calls of mole crickets and field crickets that resonant from their elaborate, trumpet shaped burrows...