We continue writing about Lobos Islet, since we love to present the wonders of the Canary archipelago, especially this islet where we go regularly on our trips from Corralejo.
This time we will dedicate the article to talk about a very characteristic species of flora in this islet. Out of over 130 plant species living in this islet nowadays, we will talk about the sweet spurge (Euphorbia balsamifera), very characteristic of the Canary Islands and a symbol, particularly in the island of Lanzarote, which stands out in the islet with magnificent specimens. Remember that the jewel of the flora in Lobos is The Evergreen, endemic to this island, of which we have already discussed in another article that we recommend.
Spurge
In the Canary Islands we call Spurge to a large group of plants of the Euphorbia family. Here in Fuerteventura, we enjoy the existence of two species of spurge, sweet Spurge (Euphorbia balsamifera) and sour Spurge (Euphorbia regis-jubae). In the Islet of Lobos it’s the sweet spurge which reaches a surprising size becoming very representative of the islet and being highly appreciated by visitors who accompany us on our trips from Corralejo. It is endemic to the Canary Islands and North Africa. Especially we see it in the lower and drier areas of the islands.
Description
It is a rounded shrub that can grow up to 2 meters; with grey stems highly branched from the base and rugged, as they are exposed to the wind. It is a “succulent” plant because its stem and root allow storage of water in much higher amounts than the rest of the plants, keeping their water for long periods, which allows them to survive in dry and arid environments. It has rounded shape with branches that have small green leaves which they lose in dry periods but which recover when the rains start again; This is a mechanism that prevents water loss during periods of harsh sun. It is just at this time of the year -autumn and winter, especially in days like the last ones, when the rain has cheered our island up, that we can enjoy their flowers. Small yellow flowers that form a unique reddish fruit which looks like knitted (tripartite structure).
Curiosities
In the chronicles of the ancient conquerors they spoke about the milk from these plants found in Fuerteventura “… trees that exude a medicinal milk …” and which has been employed for many uses throughout history. uses: As traditional fishing method (embroscar) that involves spilling the “cerote” (juice of the plant) into natural pools which can be seen during the low tide, and where fish were trapped; This juice has poisonous properties that lulled the fish and made it easier to catch them with shovels. -The Milky sap of the branches coagulates on contact with air to forms a kind of gum, and it’s said to have a nice flavour. This paste could be chewed to strengthen the gums; it was also used to wean kids, by sticking it to the udders of the goats; other uses, in times of extreme scarcity, could be as glue traps for birds. Among its medicinal uses, it treated colds in the shape of poultices; pricks of thorns, warts or wounds, by applying it straight on the skin.
All these uses, together with the appearance of lime kilns in Fuerteventura, made this sap become more scarce, since it was also used as fuel. Currently the population of this plant is abundant and these days we can enjoy its green leaves, which have sprouted with the first rains. We invite you to come to Lobos in one of our trips from Corralejo to enjoy the magnitude of these plants, loved by the ancients for their properties and characteristics of the Canary Islands and specifically of this islet that we love so much.
The town of Corralejo is again protagonist on the island, this time the long holiday weekend in December from Thursday 4th to Monday 8th , hosting the fourth LGBT Festival (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender people): Rainbow Fuerteventura.
This festival, born in 2011, already enjoys a successful position within the international circuit of gay parties, and its aim is to provide colour and spectacle, organizing different activities in bars, hotels, shops, restaurants, terraces, beach bars, and even in the streets of Corralejo, during these five days.
The common factors to all activities are the willingness to have fun, paying no heed to social barriers, breaking with tags and proposing a mix of lifestyles and music, no matter your sexual orientation, just the desire to enjoy prevails.
Among the activities we’ll find contests, shows, parades, marches and late-night rave parties, enlivened by the most cutting edge music of the moment.
This year, the town council in La Oliva has painted, with rainbow flags, some pedestrian crossings on the main street to welcome a festival fighting for equality and against homophobia, transphobia, and in general any form of discrimination existing in society. So, Corralejo joins the tolerant and inclusive tourist destinations, and is touted as a LGBT destination, ideal for a holiday.
Among the activities of the program, apart from different parties in discos, pools or on the beach, Games for Equality, Diversity and Sustainability stand out, this year taking place for the first time, and among them we find a paddle tournament, one of beach volleyball and another one of Canarian wrestling, as well as the XI Cyclo-tourist event Corralejo Dunes. On Sunday, an exceptional event will be taking place in Lobos Islet: a race over 7 kms, though the path along this magnificent islet.
On Saturday 6th The Trade Fair and White Night will take place, starting at 10am and ending at 11pm. There will be entertainment for children, street music, and Altihay community will take advantage of this opportunity to make their claims and social awareness campaign. That very day, the independent editorial “Two whiskers”, winner of the “Festival La Culta” award, and having already released six LGBT publications, will present their works, among which two monographs of stories about homophobia in Russia (“El armario de acero “) and Africa (” Los deseos afines “) can be highlighted.
Here we leave the full programme, so you decide in which of these festival activities you would like to take part to support diversity and tolerance.
And for those of you who want to discover the charms of sailing with us, we offer one of our trips by catamaran to the islet of Lobos. In FuerteCharter we are also committed to tolerance. FuerteCharter Team
On Saturday December 6th, the eleventh Cycle-tourism event, Corralejo Dunes, Miles against Cancer, will take place in Corralejo, in memory of Pilar Cabrera González.
This is a non-competitive charity event, with participants going in pack over 47 kms around almost the entire municipality of La Oliva, in support of cancer victims. When riding in pack, no cyclist can overtake the organization that makes up the lead nor exceed the pace of the group; they can’t stay behind the closure group either.
Places are limited to 200 riders, in order of registration, and the fee is 10 €, which will go entirely to associations fighting this disease.
The exit will be on December 6th, at 10: 30h., From the CC El Campanario, where this very day registration and delivery of numbers will take place from 8:30 am to 10h.
As a prerequisite, participants must be over 15, or age 15 in 2014; they must know how to ride a bike to perfection and have taken part in over-50km cycle routes; they must wear helmet, a spare tyre and hand pump, gloves, chain whip and a puncture repair kit.
They should wear Sunglasses, “camelbag” with water, sunscreen, cap and energy bars, although there will be two provision points, one with fruit and soft drinks and another one with just drinks.
To ensure the proper development of the event it’s necessary to pay attention to the organization, meet the standards of the Road Safety Act and its regulations, avoid untimely overtaking, respect the safety distances, not to push …, remembering at all time this is not a race.
And as an important point, respect for the environment and nature is called, it being completely forbidden to throw litter or food wrappers, thereby just the trace of the bike wheel remaining on the way.
All participants must submit the registration form, which you can download from this link; photocopy of DNI and the federal license or the Canarian Cycling Federation credit insurance of accidents. Under age participants must also submit a parental consent, mother’s, guardian’s or a legal tutor’s, which you can download from the link below.
Registration forms and authorizations can also be found in Tagoror Bookshop (Puerto del Rosario); the inter-island council (Public Service Board, in Puerto del Rosario, Corralejo, Gran Tarajal and Morro Jable, as well as in the Ministry of Sports and Hunting); in La Oliva town council (Department of Sports, Nautical School of Corralejo, Jose Perdomo Umpiérrez Pavilion and in La Oliva Municipal Pool); at La Mamma Restauranst, Corralejo, and the following websites:
Muraenidae are a family of voracious and slippery fish in the shape of eel or snake inhabiting rocky areas or near-shore jetties or puddles (abundant to 50m deep), in tropical and subtropical waters worldwide. They are also sometimes found in deeper waters (the largest ones). On the coast of Fuerteventura, we can find some species of this family.
They are voracious predators of fish, cephalopods and crustaceans, which usually remain hidden in crevices, stalking prey, and usually they only leave their den at night to hunt.
Morphology
They can be up to five feet long, and weigh 2 to 10kg.
They usually breed between May and October, with a peak set in August.
They have a dorsal fin along the whole body which joins ends with the tail fin. They don’t usually have pectoral and pelvic fins.
One feature of this family is its strong and double jaw (internal and external, “allien” type), whose shape allows them to catch prey and swallow it without using its limbs.
Their main predators are other morays and groupers.
They have small eyes and very underdeveloped sight, so they’re usually very suspicious fish which immediately launch attacks with their mouth to defend themselves, and though their bite isn’t usually poisonous, it’s very painful. They also have very small gills, so they often need to open their mouth wide to breathe.
Their skin does not have scales, but a mucous membrane which is toxic in some species, and they have an irregular colouration to help them camouflage.
Fishing murays
Fishing murays follows an ancient technique that mixes ritual with work. Fishermen often attract them with some songs that numb them, like siren songs. They are repetitive tunes, which vary from one island to another, but they often say things like: “Jo, little Moray … Jooo”, “Come little Moray , Goldentail Moray, the male is coming to eat your litter” and other typical verses accompanied by loud whistles and a pretty effusive intonation. The old moray fishermen believe that without this technique it would be impossible to catch these animals, as their strong jaws destroy any fishing hook.
These work songs, whose records date back to the sixteenth century, and which are said to have their origin in the ancient Greece, have been incorporated into the musical heritage of the Canary Islands, thanks to musical groups like “Los Sabandeños who sing “El pescador de Morenas” or a group of Canarian artists” Artenara” with their song ” El Canto de la Morena “.
Along with these songs, the fisherman also uses a hollow reed, inside which there is a wire ending in a noose, with a piece of squid attached as bait. The moray, stunned by repetitive songs, guard down and leaves its den in search of the piece of octopus.
Gastronomy
The moray is a delicacy for many palates, thanks to the excellent quality of its meat. The coast moray tends to have fewer bones and be more tasty than the deep water moray, which has more fat. As gastronomic anecdote, moray eels were highly valued in the Roman Empire, where the most special celebrations used to serve a menu with morays. The species was bred in a kind of fish farms, and it’s said that Romans often gave them the slaves’ flesh as food, as they said that the flavour of the morays fed with human flesh was delicious. Hence the phrase “sentenced to morays.”
Species
Among the species of Morays we have in the Canary Islands are:
Black Moray (Muraena Augusti)
It is the most abundant and is endemic to these islands and also to Madeira and Azores.
It can be up to 1m long, and it’s usually found within 100m deep.
Its body is spindle-shaped and in the distance it may seem black or bluish gray, but if you look closely you can clearly see its white spots.
It prefers rocky bottoms, with caves and hollows to shelter during the day.
Mediterranean Moray (Muraena helena)
This species is the largest one, reaching five feet long, and it’s usually found on the eastern islands, dwelling, like the black Moray, in rocky bottoms. Its bite is poisonous, due to the haemophilus secretion of its palatal mucosa.
Fangtooth Moray (Enchelycore anatina)
Although not as plentiful as the black Moray, we can also see it in rocky areas. It differs clearly because of its yellow head and its body patterns. It is a little smaller and it can reach up to 60cms.
Goldentail Moray (Gymnothorax miliaris)
This species is often mistaken with the Fangtooth Moray, but its head is more rounded and its body patterns are more marked. It is one of the most elusive and rare to see moray eels, as it is very shy. El Hierro is the island where it is most frequently seen. It is a poorly studied species.
Para nosotros, que acudimos diariamente en nuestras excursiones desde Corralejo a la Isla de Lobos, este islote sigue siendo un paraíso, casi virgen, donde la naturaleza y el mar son los protagonistas. Pues no somos los únicos seres que ven en este islote un lugar ideal, hay más visitante, excepcionales, que año tras año acuden a este lugar a pasar el invierno. Estamos hablando de aves migratorias que pasan en Fuerteventura, e Isla de Lobos, la época invernal, suponemos que como nosotros, buscando calor, tranquilidad y buenos alimentos.
En esta ocasión vamos a centrarnos en las Garzas, Garcetas y Zarapitos; 3 aves muy habituales en Fuerteventura en estos meses de otoño que ya anuncian la llegada del invierno, vienen del norte, donde crían en la época de verano, huyendo del frío y buscando zonas costeras, humedales, alimento y algo de calor para volver a emprender el vuelo una vez el invierno toca a su fin.
La Garceta común
Desde nuestro barco cuando hacemos la excursión a Lobos y fondeamos cerca de las zonas del islote más vírgenes podemos llegar a ver Garcetas comunes (Egrett Garcetta), personalmente me parecen aves súper curiosas. La garceta común es la más pequeña entre las garcetas, unos 60cm de longitud (envergadura alar:1m.). Para reconocerla, si hay dudas, solo hay que mirar sus patas negras, muy finas, con los dedos de color amarillo, pico recto y puntiagudo negro. Totalmente de plumaje blanco y un cuello largo pero dobladizo. El adulto en época nupcial tiene plumas ornamentales alargadas en el pecho y en el dorso, así como una cresta formada por dos plumas blancas.
fotografiatindaya.com
Es muy fácil verlas pues no son tan asustadizas como otras aves, por el contrario suelen estar cerca de zonas habitadas por el hombre. En Fuerteventura los surferos las ven habitualmente, también en Lobos en las zonas donde ha habido pesca aprovechando los restos de la misma para darse el banquete. Su alimentación se basa en anfibios, insectos, invertebrados marinos, peces pequeños.
Habita en costas, embalses, charcas y cursos de agua y hacen sus nidos sobre árboles, cañaverales, riscos o suelo, en forma de plataforma. En febrero-marzo es la época de cría, una sola puesta al año y tienen entre 3 y 6 huevos que incuban durante 21 días; una vez eclosionan los polluelos son alimentados por ambos padres otros 21 días, y a los 35 abandonan el nido.
Son muy habituales en la época invernal en el archipiélago canario, aves migratorias que están de paso durante el invierno. No es el islote de Lobos su lugar favorito dentro de las islas macaronésicas pero es habitual, cada vez más, verlas en la costa o en la charca. Muchos han sido los afortunados que las han visto volando hacia Lobos, o a la inversa, durante nuestras excursiones desde Corralejo.
www.canariasconservacion.org
La Garza Real
Muy habituales en Fuerteventura durante el invierno, sobre todo en charcas naturales, tanto de agua dulce como de Costa, vistas a menudo en la charca que se forma bajo el faro de isla de Lobos. Es una ave zancuda de gran tamaño, que habita en Europa y nos visita en invierno; últimamente es más frecuente verlas durante todo el año, por lo que se piensa que probablemente alguna pareja ya haya nidificado aquí y como muchos, elegido Fuerteventura como su vivienda principal; aunque en realidad los científicos no la consideran ave nidificante en Canarias, sino migratorio.
Su longitud es de unos 90cm. con una envergadura alar de 1.70cm, un peso de 2kg. Característico es su plumaje gris con lasartes inferiores más blanquecinas. Tras la nuca, y hasta los ojos, tiene una especie de cresta azul muy oscuro, medio caida y formada por dos plumas muy largas. Pico marrón amarillento aclarando en la mandíbula inferior.
avesencanarias.blogspot.com
Muchos viajeros en nuestras excursiones se han sorpendido al verlas sobrepasarnos con un vuelo tan característico e inconfundible, ya que son de gran tamaño con el cuello doblado en curva, larguísimas patas (marrones), con un vuelo tranquilo; además cuando vuelan graznan, ronca y ásperamente.
En nuestras isla tienen alimento de sobra ya que su dieta favorita son peces y crustáceos pequeños, insectos,… también puede cazar ratones e incluso reptiles.
Zarapito Trinador
Muy pero que muy habitual en todo el archipiélago. Su paso, tanto por península como por Canarias, es entre Julio y Septiembre hasta marzo, que vuelve al norte de Europa a criar. En su época migratoria (invernada) se comporta como un ave costera, no lo hace así en su época de cría en lugares más fríos.
www.canariasmedioambiente.com
La puesta empieza en mayo hasta junio, 3 o 4 huevos moteados de color pardo. Incuban 27 o 28 días y los pollos, precoces como los de todas las limícolas, se desarrollan en unos 35-40 días.
Mide unos 40cm, su peso oscila entre los 200 y 400gr. Son características sus patas, zancudas, y su puntiagudo pico curvado. La vemos habitualmente desde finales del verano tanto sola como en grupo, en las playas de Fuertevetura y de Lobos y en las zonas rocosas del litoral. Su alimentación es tanto de invertebrados como de materia vegetal, en diferente cuantía según la estación y los hábitats que ocupe.
Este es otro habitual en nuestras excursiones desde Corralejo.
Aquí dejamos esta pequeña guía de tres de las aves migratorias que, huyendo del frio, eligen, como nosotros, estas tierras paradisíacas para pasar unos meses. Tenemos que apuntar la importancia de Fuerteventura en lo que a aves se refiere, importancia que empiezó a conocerse en los últimos años, ya somos destino turístico para muchos amantes de la observación de aves. Es, además, uno de los motivos que llevó a la protección de Isla de Lobos.
We are in the twenty-seventh annual International Kite Festival Fuerteventura, held, one more year, in the Natural Park of the Dunes of Corralejo and the Playa de La Concha in El Cotillo.
Coloured fabrics were launched into the sky at the beginning of November, on the beach of La Concha, to stay in the wind until Sunday November 9th , painting the immense blue sky and the incomparable majorero landscape with hundreds of different shades.
What initially began as a gathering of flying kite amateurs, 27 years ago, has become quite an event of national and international importance, attracting “kiters” from all around the globe.
Its organizers, Jacinto Rodriguez and Claudio Azzali, are supported by the Department of Tourism of the City of La Oliva, in the arrangement of this event.
The kites that could be seen those days in the two beaches of Fuerteventura stood out because of their colours, some for their large dimensions, many for the originality of their creators. Crabs walking across the ground, ladybirds which suddenly jump and move several meters away, the legendary witches, large circles of colours, horses, hippos, cows, clowns and thousands of ingenious ideas like a diver being chased by a small fish – whose movement was very well attained really seeming to be immersed in water – were some examples of kites that you could find flying over the majorero sky.
The holding of this festival is an important promotion for the beaches of Fuerteventura, since it is an event followed by the media, broadcast at national and international level.
The first day of the event, static and acrobatic kite flying exhibitions took place on the beach of La Concha, El Cotillo, but the real inauguration took place on the following day, on the beach of El Burro, within the Natural Park Dunas de Corralejo.
So you know, if you want to enjoy a weekend in the wind, with stunning scenery, we recommend attending this event, which also, on the other hand, you can witness from our boat, if you decide to join us on one of our tours around the coast of Corralejo.
From October 28th and until November 29th the Art Centre Juan Ismael, in Puerto del Rosario, will host an exhibition where some of the archaeological Roman remains found during the excavations in Lobos islet will be shown.
Two campaigns have already been carried out in these excavations in Lobos site 1, since 2012, where, as we said in one previous article in this blog, some archaeological remains of what would have been a Roman factory for the obtaining of purple dye (Stramonita haemastoma), dating back between the I Century B.C and the I Century A.D, have been found out. Hence the name of the exhibition: “Lobos 1, a Roman purple workshop”.
This site, located in La Calera or La Concha beach, to the South West of Lobos islet, will have a new campaign of diggings, result of an agreement between Fuerteventura Council, The Autonomous Organism of Museums, Some centres in Tenerife council and some scientists in the research project “Poblamiento y Colonización de las Islas en el Atlántico (PYCIA), from La Laguna University and the OAMC and there are big expectations that more remains that could be find tell us more about the history of the Canary Islands and the population of the Atlantic islands, through the Roman settlements dated to the Early Empire that, besides, also show that the boundaries and the influence of the Roman Empire spread far beyond it had been recorded up to now. For this reason many researches and approaches will have to be carried out again and the relationship between the Canary Islands and other Roman settlements of the time will be established.
The exhibition shows a selection of manufactured Roman goods, from ceramic amphoras, used to transport and store metal iron and bronze items (needles to sew nets, hooks, punches…) to stone items related to the processing of purple dye, like crusher pebbles, anvils and mortars.
The exhibition also shows shelly deposits specialised in Stramonita haemastoma, where we can see some fracture patterns of these molluscs and the way the glans used to get the purple dye were extracted.
Kitchen items can also be found, witnesses of a food and domestic activity, such as pans, different food containers, flatware, jars, platters…
The exhibition can be visited in the Art Centre Juan Ismael, C/ Almirante Lallermand, Nº 30, in Puerto del Rosario, opening times from 10 to 13 and from 17 to 21h, every day except Sundays and Mondays, when the centre is closed.
Our dear neighbour, Lobos islet, main spot in our daily boat trips towards its coast, is taking part in a remodelling project which aims to meet the needs of tens of visitors who get to its quay every day.
Last summer they launched some restoration works in Lobos islet, in the area of the old restaurant. This area has become a resting area with W.C, benches and shadow to provide service to the masses of visitors who go to the islet every day.
The old restaurant in Lobos islet, dating back to the 60’s, was an abandoned project in the 80’s, with a quite peculiar architecture, irregular plant combining cubic and curvy spaces, very different from the local architecture and that has now become, thanks to a project by the Technical office of Fuerteventura Council, a resting area —160m2— for visitors, whose finish is perfectly integrated in this natural site where pine wood has been used, following the environmental friendly line which is promoted, especially in such an important an area of environmental awareness as Lobos islet.
The works in these facilities were finished one month ago, but the outside surrounding area remains to be laid out, so as to make it available to the visitors. There is no concrete date to inaugurate them, although it can’t take a long time.
And together with this refurbishing process, The environmental department has also approved the project “Acondicionamiento y mejora del muelle de Lobos”, which is being dealt with by the Port authority in Las Palmas, in order to improve the conditions of Lobos quay, due to the fact that companies devoted to the transport of passengers to Lobos islet had been complaining for a long time about the poor state of such quay and about the difficulty to access it in days of rough sea.
So, this project aims to improve the state of the quay and extend it, to make it safer when facing adverse weather conditions, and to ensure safe berthing regardless of the tide.
The works they are trying to carry out imply:
The building of stone filling banks (stones thrown to the bottom so they can be used as foundations for the quay), that will take up around 25m long at the sea bottom.
The building of a 1,6m wide berm on each side of the quay.
The building of a 14,58m long and 8,1m wide quay.
The restoration of the side slots.
The building of an access stairway.
We’ll keep you informed about the development of this refurbishment project, which is being studied in detail to minimise the environmental impact and provide a better service to the visitors without damaging the natural site which this islet, Biosphere Reserve, represents.
A blue whale, the biggest animal in the world, can be spotted very near the area where we make our boat trips from Corralejo.
Some time ago, the Strait of “La Bocaina” which separates Fuerteventura and Lanzarote a blue whale was seen, by a group of investigators. This sighting took place during the campaign for the project development “Canarias con la Mar”, funded by “Fundación Biodiversidad”, the ministry of Environment (MAGRAMA), the Canary Island Government and Fuerteventura Council.
This cetacean (in latin, Balaenopteridaees) is one of the biggest animals in the world (the biggest dinosaur ever known was smaller that this whale). They can be up to 31m long and weigh a bit over 150 tons. The specimens in the southern hemisphere are usually bigger that those in the northern one. Female specimens (so as to give birth to their huge calves)are usually bigger than male ones too (maximum 24m long and 80 tons). They can reach a depth of 500m. Their usual speed is 22km/h, although they can even reach the 50km/h if they feel threatened, and they can also lower their speed up to 6.5 km/h when they forage for food.
With a long body and a wide head, this impressive whale has no teeth, but beard (around 300-400 formations on each side of their jaws, looking like toothbrushes, ideal to catch little preys (up to 1m long).
They can be submerged for 10-20 minutes, needing to go to the surface and breath after this time, bursting the typical jet of water of this species, which can reach the 6-12 ms high, imagine how big they are!
Surprisingly, these huge animals feed on small crustaceans; krills are they favourite food. Every specimen can eat up to 40 million of these crustaceans during their feeding stage, and they need up to 1.5 million calories a day to keep active.
The northern Pacific and Atlantic Oceans hold the biggest populations of these cetaceans. They are a really damaged species due to the whales hunting, and in many areas they have not recovered yet. Just one out of the four different species of blue whales in the world inhabits the northern Atlantic, which is why the fact of having caught sight of one of them in our waters is a true privilege. We are looking forward to finding this blue whale in our boat trips from Corralejo.
As far as their behaviour is concerned, blue whales have been seen alone, in couple or in small groups, no bigger than 7 specimens. When the food is abundant and on very few occasions, 60 of these animals have been seen together. They usually forage 100ms deep during the day, and they only go up to the surface at night. They feed through a filtering system: they open their mouth swallowing a large amount of water and krill. Then they close their jaws and push the water back outside through their beards, their preys being trapped there; with this system they also consume little fish, crustaceans and the squids which swim among the krill.
As for their breeding, their gestation period lasts around one year, and they reach their sexual maturity at the age of 10. They give birth to a single whale calf every 3 years. Whale calves are born in winter, in warm waters, and they are able to migrate thousands of kilometres until they reach polar waters to forage the next summer. Whale calves are usually 7mts long and weigh up to 3 tons; for 8 months they are breastfed, almost 400 litres of milk a day, and they grow up to 90kg a day, so when they get to their weaning process the calves have probably doubled their size already.
They have a long life expectancy, 90 years on average, although they can live up to 110 years.
These huge mammals make a deep vibrating sound that can be heard hundreds of kilometres away under the water. Little is known about the reason why they make this kind of sound, but these blue whales can make calls lasting between 10 and 30 seconds.
The blue whale is an endangered species for several reasons: many specimens die because they are hurt by big ships or because they are trapped in fishing nets. Of course, the global heating also affects the species they feed on. Nowadays whale hunting is punished in every continent, although illegal hunting still exists. It’s important to protect the areas of concentration of this species and their migratory corridors. Their presence in Fuerteventura and Lanzarote reminds us how important this area is.
We are looking forward to watching this blue whale, who has been named Esperanza, more closely in our boat trips from Corralejo. We’ll keep you informed.
FuerteCharter’s team.
Características de la ballena azul
Este cetáceo de la familia de los Rorcuales azules (en latín: Balaenopteridaees) es uno de los animales más grandes de la tierra (el dinosaurio más grande conocido es más pequeño que estas ballenas). Llegan a medir 31m de longitud y pesan poco más de 150 toneladas. Los ejemplares que habitan el hemisferio sur son generalmente de mayor tamaño que las del hemisferio norte; suelen ser más grandes las hembras (para poder parir sus enormes crías) que los machos (un máximo de 24m y 80 toneladas). Pueden llegar a profundidades de 500 metros. Normalmente se desplazan a 22 km/h, aunque si perciben alguna amenaza pueden alcanzar hasta 50 km/h, llegando a bajar esa velocidad hasta los 6.5 km/h cuando se alimentan.
De cuerpo alargado y cabeza ancha, este impresionante rorcual no tiene dientes, sino barbas, unos 300-400 formaciones en cada lado de su mandíbula, parecidas a las cerdas de un cepillo, ideales para capturar presas pequeñas y que pueden medir hasta 1 metro.
Puede permanecer bajo el agua por periodos de 10 a 20 minutos, saliendo a respirar después de este tiempo a la superficie, lanzando el chorro característico de esta especie, que puede llegar a alturas de 6 a 12 metros, ¡imagínense las dimensiones!
Alimentación de la ballena azul
Sorprendentemente la alimentación de estos impresionantes animales se basa en crustáceos muy pequeños; el krill es su sustento favorito. Cada individuo puede comer hasta 40 millones de estos crustáceos diarios en su época de alimentación, y necesitan alrededor de 1.5 millones de calorías al día para mantenerse activos.
Los océanos Pacífico Norte y Antártico Norte, albergan las poblaciones más grandes de estos cetáceos. Se trata de una especie muy dañada por la caza de ballenas y en muchas zonas aún no se ha recuperado. De las 4 subespecies de estos rorcuales azules que hay en el mundo, solo una habita en el Atlántico Norte, y se estima que no hay más de 400 individuos en nuestra zona del Atlántico, con lo que haber avistado una en nuestras aguas es todo un privilegio. Estamos deseando encontrarnos con esta ballena azul en nuestras excursiones en barco desde Corralejo.
Comportamiento de la ballena azul
En cuanto a su comportamiento se han avistado ballenas azules en solitario, en pareja o en grupos pequeños de no más de 7 individuos. Cuando hay gran cantidad de alimento, y en situaciones contadas, se han llegado a ver hasta 60 de estos animales juntos. Generalmente se alimentan a más de 100 m de profundidad durante el día y solo en la noche en la superficie. Su alimentación es por un sistema de filtrado: abre su boca introduciendo gran cantidad de agua y de krill, entonces cierra sus mandíbulas y empuja el agua de vuelta hacia fuera a través de sus barbas, quedando sus presas atrapadas; con este sistema accidentalmente consume también pequeños peces, crustáceos y calamares que nadan entre el krill.
Reproducción y crías de la ballena azul
En cuanto a su reproducción, su periodo de gestación dura alrededor de un año, y su madurez sexual llega aproximadamente a sus 10 años. Dan a luz una sola cría cada 3 años. Los ballenatos nacen en invierno en aguas cálidas con la capacidad de realizar una migración de miles de kilómetros hasta aguas polares donde alimentarse el siguiente verano. Las crías, al nacer, miden unos 7 metros de longitud y pesan hasta tres toneladas; durante 8 meses se alimentan de leche materna, casi 400 litros al día, creciendo diariamente hasta 90 kg más, con lo que cuando les llega el destete probablemente la cría ya ha doblado su tamaño.
Tienen una larga esperanza de vida, una media de 90 años, aunque pueden vivir incluso hasta los 110 años.
El Canto de la balleza azul
Estos grandes animales emiten un sonido profundo y resonante que se puede captar a cientos de kilómetros bajo las aguas. No se sabe mucho sobre los motivos que les llevan a producir estos cantos, pero todos los grupos de rorcuales azules emiten llamadas de al menos entre 10 y 30 segundos de duración.
La ballena azul es una especie en peligro de extinción por varios motivos, muchos ejemplares mueren por heridas realizadas por grandes buques o por quedar atrapados en redes de pesca. Por supuesto, el calentamiento global afecta a las especies de las que se alimenta. Actualmente la caza de ballenas está penada en cualquier continente, aunque sigue habiendo caza ilegal. Es importante proteger las zonas de concentración de la especie y sus corredores migratorios. Su presencia en la zona de Fuerteventura y Lanzarote nos vuelve a recordar la importancia de esta zona.
Deseando estamos ver más de cerca a esta ballena azul, a la que se ha llamado Esperanza, en nuestras excursiones desde Corralejo. Les mantendremos informados.
As every year, the 13th October the municiaplity of Tuineje, South of Fuerteventura, celebrates with a performance that is becoming more and more popular, to commemorate the victory of the “majorera” population over the Corsairs’ attacks in 1740.
This staged battle is about the battles of “El Cuchillete” and that of “Tamasite”, and it takes place within the frame of the festivities in honour of San Miguel Arcángel, patron saint of this locality, whom the neighbours promised to never forget this date if he helped them achieve the victory.
This dates back to the middle of the XVIII C, hard times for Fuerteventura due to the huge droughts that destroyed the harvests turning Fuerteventura, which was considered “the barn of the Canary Island”, into a dry land with no water where the plants could hardly bear fruits. At those times the “majorera” population was decimated due to emigration to other islands in search of sustenance.
It turns out that in 1739 Great Britain, helped by Portugal, declares war to Spain in its Caribbean colonies, with the intention of controlling the whole market in America, which is known as The War of Jenkins’ Ear, as the trigger was that a Spanish representative cut the British Jenkins’ Ear, carrying in his ship loads of smuggled goods, so as to warn the British crown. This deed was considered as an offence by the British, who decided to start the war.
The attacks extended to the colonies in the Atlantic, The Canary Islands being target of looting by Corsairs, who were trying to get ships and loots to exchange them later on in Madeira.
At those times, the crown of Spain was not protecting The Islands with their troops regularly, so, taking advantage of the lack of population and arms in Fuerteventura, and also of how easy it was to access its coast, having so many kilometres of sandy beaches, a British corsair disembarked at Gran Tarajal beach, on October 13th 1740, and its crew managed to get to Tuineje area and plunder it.
However, the “majorero” people didn’t let the fear overcome them at that moment and, organised in militias, managed by the lieutenant colonel Sánchez Umpiérrez, and armed wit sticks and stones, decided to face the attackers in the well-known “El cuchillete” battle, which ended up with the victory of Fuerteventura’s people, who killed 33 out of the 53 attackers, and imprisoned the remaining ones.
The corsairs, very surprised not to have their troops back, attacked Fuerteventura again one month later, November 24th 1740, and this time the corsairs faced, in the well-known “Tamasite” battle, on Gran Tarajal beach, a more trained population, as their self-confidence had grown and now they also had firearms they had seized in the previous battle. By then, “los majoreros” had also developed their military strategies and they used camels, which were very abundant by then, as shields, thus stopping to a great extent the corsairs’ attacks. And once again they emerged victorious, without the help of the Spanish troops, who didn’t establish a steady military base in the islands until the XIX century, a bit too late for corsairs’ attacks.
A fragment of this island’s history was performed last October 13th, thus reviving this battle that makes the “majorero” people feel so proud of.
