Alboran Island

Territory :

In addition to the main island, to the northeast there is the island of Las Nubes, a small rocky island separate from Alboran by the Morenas Canal.

Physical characteristic :

The Island of Alboran and the marine floor that surround it constitute a privileged enclave in the mouth of the Straight of Gibraltar, within the Alboran Sea that is the western most subbasin of the Mediterranean Sea. From a geological point of view, Alboran Island has a volcanic origin in its majority represented by andesites, though there are some conglomerates, loose sand and travertine limestones. The relief of the island is practically flat, with a slight inclination towards the southeast, and is surrounded by cliffs, with the maximum height being 15 metres.

Specificity and importance :

With regards to protected species in the context of the Mediterranean or species of ecological interest for being endemic elements or in danger, in the terrestrial zone there are 3 species of plants, 2 invertebrates and 5 birds; in the marine portion at least 5 species of plants, 14 invertebrates and 5 vertebrates are significant. There also exists a group of 11 species of invertebrates that are the object of fishing exploitations, to which we can add 10 species of fish whose fishing needs to be regulated for the economical and environmental benefits that they generate.

Threats and Pressures :

Human presence in the zone has been basically limited to military outposts due to the strategic role that the island possesses in the Mediterranean. The access points to the area are a small port located in the east of the island, which also serves as a refuge point for small boats in case a storm blows up. There is also a small boat dock on the west of the island.

The fishing activity is very significant in the zone due to the economic interest that it represents, and in the last few years the danger of overexploitation of the fishing resources has obligated the Central Spanish Administration to create a marine reserve and a fishing reserve in the Alboran area.

Ecological characteristics :

With regards to the land biological medium, it should be noted that the isolation, the strong dominating winds, the intense marine influence marina and scarce surface of the island, together with the poor soil and little development, give way to a saline environment, hostile for the development of certain life forms, which is the reason that there are not trees nor large bushes. These factors condition the development of an especially resistant type of biology, but that is also interesting, since it houses diverse endemic species, some of which protected by European legislation and by the Spanish and Andalusian governments. The marine media of the island presents a frontier character, situated between the three provinces of the Atlantic-Mediterranean region (Lusitania, Mauritania and Mediterranean), and connecting point between two totally different oceanic basins such as the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. The result of all of this is a very high richness in the flora and fauna, with the presence of endemic Mediterranean and Atlantic species that find in this zone the limit of their entrance into the Mediterranean.

Management :

Ministry of Ecological Transition, Jorge Alonso Rodriguez, jarodrigz@miteco.es

The institutional collaboration to elaborate the management plan and to implement it is mainly carried out among the organisms that have responsibility for the marine portion such as the Environmental ministry of the Regional Andalusian Government and the Ministry of Agriculture and Fishing, in particular in materials of ecosystems, fishing and its protection. This collaboration is complementary, in such a way as to optimize the human resources and materials available.

Geographical position :

The island of Alboran is located halfway between the coasts of Melilla (north of Africa) and the coasts of Almería on the Iberian Peninsula (see adjoined map 1). It is about 40 nautical miles off the coast of Almeria (about 74 km) and 30 miles (about 56 km) for the African coast.