Following the west bank of the Côa River, Ermo das Águias marks an important transition in the landscape of the river valley. Here, the gentle slopes that flanked the river from the source end, and the rugged cliffs and escarpments that lead to its mouth on the Douro River begin.
Bushes and bare rock dominate the landscape, partly due to soil conditions, but also due to the impact of fire and grazing in recent centuries. However, the process of rewilding is already evident in the groves of black oak, and in the small holm oaks and cork oaks that appear among their large secular relatives. Along the run-off lines, the wet meadows recover their floristic diversity, previously suppressed by the intensity of grazing, which was concentrated in these areas of greater productivity. The slopes are regularly flown by some of the most emblematic birds of the region, such as the golden eagle, the black stork and the griffon vulture, and the ruins of an ancient fojo, a stone structure used to hunt Iberian wolves, attests to the ancestral presence of this predator in these lands.
Over this year, Rewilding Portugal is developing several biodiversity monitoring and conservation actions here, as well as the planning of visitation routes, supported by the recently opened Rewilding Center in the village of Vale de Madeira. We also introduced a herd of semi-wild Sorraia horses, with the aim of replicating the extinct ecological role of the wild horse.
Fauna and flora of Ermo das Águias
Watch here the video of the Rewilding Center openning near Ermo das Águias rewilding area
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How to arrive in Vale de Madeira
Vale de Madeira is part of the Alto do Palurdo (Pereiro/Vale de Madeira) parish. It is located in the municipality of Pinhel and has good road access. Although it is easier to access it by car, there are also buses that go from Pinhel to Vale de Madeira and whose timetables can be found here. It is possible to reach Pinhel for transfer (via bus) to Vale de Madeira from all corners of the country.
The location coordinates are 40.77328669563756, -7.022777435310063 and you can have acess to them here. You can find our Rewilding Center in Rua do Forno, nº9, 6400-671 Pinhel.