L’Albufera

It is one of the most significant wetland areas in Spain and the most important in the Autonomous Community of Valencia, a coastal lagoon surrounded by rice fields. It includes a well-developed dune ecosystem in its non-urbanized area. The area also houses a marine area. It is important for the conservation of numerous aquatic birds and contains several plant endemisms (such as Limonium dufourii, Thalictrum maritimum, etc.) or threatened ones (Juniperus oxycedrus subsp. macrocarpa, Kosteletzkya pentacarpos, etc.). In some of the ullals or springs it includes there are populations of Valencia Toothcarp (Valencia hispanica). This area is crucial for the wintering birds, specifically Anatidae species, with over 70,000 specimens seen in some years. The area is also a habitat for many nesting species, including over 20 species of waterbirds. In many cases, these species present their largest reproductive populations in the Valencian Community in this wetland, highlighting the Sandwich Tern (99.6% of the total), the Gull-Billed Tern (96.4%) and the Little Egret (96.5% ).