Montsant Fauna

La Serra de Montsant Natural Park contains what is without doubt one of the richest animal populations in Catalonia. Its variety of environments leads to a wide diversity of extremely interesting species not only for their abundance but also due to their nature as
endemic species or animals that are very rare among Catalan fauna. Among the mammals, it is worth highlighting the presence of the greater horseshoe bat (Rhinolophus ferrumequinum), the wildcat (Felis silvestris) and some isolated examples of the Spanish
ibex (Capra pyrenaica ssp hispanica). Other characteristic mammals are the wild boar (Sus scrofa), the common genet (Genetta genetta), the beech marten (Martes foina), the Eurasian badger (Meles meles), the polecat (Mustela putorius) and the Etruscan pygmy shrew (Suncus etruscus).

The Montsant mountain range is a nesting and resting place for a number of species of birds of prey of great interest, such as the Bonelli's eagle (Hieraaetus fasciatus), the Peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus), the kestrel (Falco tinnunculus), the golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos), the Eurasian eagle owl (Bubo bubo), the Northern goshawk (Accipiter gentilis) and the longeared owl (Asio otus). Among the other birds, it is worth mentioning the blue rock thrush (Monticola solitarius), the rock thrush (Monticola saxatilis), the Wallcreeper (Trichodroma muraria), the crested tit (Parus cristatus), the great spotted woodpecker (Dendrocopus major), the dipper (Cinclus cinclus) and the kingfisher (Alcedo atthis). The reptile family is represented by the Iberian wall lizard (Podarcis hispanica), the Lataste's viper (Vipera latasti), the ladder snake (Elaphe scalaris), the viperine snake (Natrix maura), the horseshoe whip snake (Coluber hippocrepis) and the Montpellier snake (Malpolon monspessulanus). Of the invertebrates, beetles such as the Capricorn beetle (Cerambyx cerdo ssp. mirbecky), the rhinoceros beetle (Oryctes nasicornis ssp grypus), and the stag beetle (Lucanus cervus) are the largest and
most often seen. In addition to this, the good quality of the waters of the Montsant river and its subsidiary streams has resulted in a wide variety of fish, in particular species
such as barbels (Barbus graellsii, B. haasi), French nase (Chondrostoma miegii) and trout (Salmo trutta). In the more hidden spots the white-clawed crayfish (Austropotamobius pallipes ssp lusitanicus ), which is growing ever rarer, can still be found. Among the amphibians, the salamander (Salamandra salamandra) and the natterjack toad (Bufo calamita) are noteworthy.