Butterflies, Moths and Wildflowers in the Picos de Europa and Western Portugal
    Wildflower, butterfly & birdwatching tours in Iberia: Spanish & Portuguese wildlife at its most memorable
 
Teresa Farino © Wendy Wilson

Teresa Farino - Wildflowers, butterflies and moths and general natural history holidays in Spain and Portugal, in particular the Picos de Europa.

Teresa is an all-round naturalist with a special interest in the flora, lepidoptera and odonata of the Iberian peninsula. She lives in the Picos de Europa and has been leading wildlife tours in Spain and Portugal since 1989.
Teresa Farino's trips for 2013

Teresa Farino

I fell in love with the Picos de Europa, in northern Spain, during a university field trip in 1985, and promptly abandoned a career in nature conservation in Britain to eke out a precarious existence as an environmental journalist, just so that I could live in these magnificent mountains. In 1989, I started Heart-flowered Serapias - Picos de Europa, N Spain. © Teresa Farino Heart-flowered Serapias
Serapias cordigera
© Teresa Farino
leading natural history tours to the region, in order to share the extraordinary wealth of wildlife to be found in the Picos de Europa with the rest of the world... and have been doing so ever since.

In the meantime, I grabbed every possible opportunity to explore the rest of the Iberian peninsula, marvelling at how one - relatively - small area could harbour so many different ecosystems, each home to a unique assemblage of plants and animals, as well as at the specific way of life selected by our ancestors to exploit the resources of each in a traditional manner.

Portuguese Squill - Grazalema, S Spain. © Teresa Farino Portuguese Squill
Scilla peruviana
© Teresa Farino

I have written about these experiences in many books and articles concerned with the natural history of Spain and Portugal, most notably Travellers' Nature Guides: Spain (co-authored with Mike Lockwood; Oxford University Press, 2004), which gives a comprehensive account of hundreds of prime Spanish wildlife destinations and their flora and fauna.  As this book is now out of print, we are in the process of preparing a series of more detailed regional guides, in conjunction with Náyade Editorial.  By contrast, my most recent book - Wild Spain (New Holland, 2009) - was designed with the armchair naturalist in mind, and is lavishly illustrated with both my own photographs and images from renowned wildlife photographer Carlos Sánchez.

Although I would probably describe myself as a botanist first and foremost, I am fascinated by all aspects of Iberian wildlife, and particularly passionate about wildflowers, butterflies and moths; since 1988 I have been compiling a database of the Lepidoptera of the Picos de Europa. Over the years I have also built up an extensive photographic library of the landscapes, flora and fauna of Spain and Portugal, with an emphasis on Mazarine Blues - Spanish Pyrenees, NE Spain. © Teresa Farino Mazarine Blues Cyaniris semiargus © Teresa Farino flowers and invertebrates; a few examples can be seen on these pages, with more on the Wild-Spain website.

In addition to contributing to magazines such as BBC WILDLIFE and British Wildlife, as well as to most books currently in print that deal with Spanish wildlife, I have also written Landscapes of the Picos de Europa (now in its fifth edition) and - with Mike Lockwood Paeonia mascula - Picos de Europa, N Spain. © Teresa FarinoPaeonia mascula© Teresa Farino - Landscapes of the Costa Brava (2003/2006), both for Sunflower Books. These two books are walking guides with an added natural history element. Other books of a more general nature include The Living World (1989), Sharks - the ultimate predators (1990) and The Photographic Encyclopaedia of Wildflowers (1991), all for Colour Library Books, Godalming.

Over the years I have led wildlife holidays to many Spanish and Portuguese destinations apart from the Picos de Europa, including the Algarve, western Portugal, the Canary Islands, Extremadura, Grazalema, Almería, along the length of the River Ebro, the Páramos of Northern Castile and the Catalan and Aragonese Pyrenees.

In 2013 I will be organising and leading my usual series of wildlife tours in the Picos de Europa, focussing on general natural history, wildflowers and orchids, and butterflies and moths, as well as an early spring trip to Grazalema, where flowers, birds and reptiles are the main theme. With Jeff Clarke, I shall be leading springtime all-round wildlife holidays in the Picos de Europa, and the Catalan Pyrenees. In addition, at the end of the summer John Muddeman and I will be leading a new week-long tour in the Somiedo Natural Park (Asturias), to observe some of the last Cantabrican Brown Bears, in conjunction with the very knowledgeable agents from the Fundación Oso Pardo.

Teresa Farino - Trip Listing for 2013

Trip name Date More information
Sierra de Grazalema
spring flowers, birds and other wildlife of western western Andalucía
>> Sierra de Grazalema trip report 2012
>> Botanical trip report 2007
2 - 9 May 2013 Iberian Wildlife Tours
Springtime in the Picos de Europa
a fabulous general natural history trip to the Picos de Europa, via the Bay of Biscay in search of cetaceans and seabirds, in association with Jeff Clarke Ecology
>> Picos & Páramos trip report 2012
>> Picos de Europa trip report 2011
>> Picos de Europa trip report 2010
12 - 23 May 2013 Iberian Wildlife Tours & Jeff Clarke Ecology
A Feast of Flowers
orchids and other botanical treasures of the Picos de Europa
>> Botanical trip report 2009
>> BSBI trip report Picos de Europa 2004
28 May - 4 June 2013 Iberian Wildlife Tours
Wildlife of the Catalan Pyrenees
an early-summer extravaganza of wildlife in La Cerdanya, in association with Jeff Clarke Ecology
>> Catalan Pyrenees trip report 2011
11 - 18 June 2013 Iberian Wildlife Tours & Jeff Clarke Ecology
Butterflies and Moths of the Picos and Páramos
two bases in stunning landscapes, for 100+ butterflies and several hundred macromoths
>> Butterflies & moths trip report 2008
>> Butterflies & moths trip report 2006
>> Butterflies & moths trip report 2005
2 - 11 July 2013 Iberian Wildlife Tours
A family wildlife holiday in the Picos de Europa
Introduce your children to the plants and animals of the mountains of northern Spain this summer
1 - 8 Aug 2013 Iberian Wildlife Tours
In Search of the Littlest Grizzly: Cantabrican Brown Bears in Somiedo
A week spent observing these endangered mammals amid the superb mountain scenery of western Asturias, plus an abundance of other late-summer wildlife
27 Aug – 3 Sept 2013 Iberian Wildlife Tours & the Fundación Oso Pardo
Autumn moth weekends in the Picos de Europa
four-night stays in a superb locality for nocturnal lepidoptera, with daily excursions in search of butterflies, orthoptera and other wildlife
5 - 9 Sept 2013;
3 - 7 Oct 2013
Iberian Wildlife Tours
Autumn in Andalucía
in search of butterflies, dragonflies, migratory birds, autumn-flowering bulbs, and other wildlife around the Costa de la Luz (Cádiz)
24 Sept - 1 Oct 2013 Iberian Wildlife Tours
Daily Wildlife Walks in the Picos de Europa

throughout 2013 Iberian Wildlife Tours

Giant Peacock Moth - Picos de Europa, N Spain. © Teresa Farino Giant Peacock Moth Saturnia pyri © Teresa Farino Please click on the tour that interests you for more details and feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

I have also organised many private excursions over the years, with the emphasis on wildflowers, butterflies and moths, birdwatching and even Romanesque architecture. As such, I would be happy to discuss the possibility of designing a tour focused on your particular interests, so if the idea appeals to you, please get in touch.




Flora & Fauna of the Picos de Europa
Over the past 25 years, Teresa Farino has compiled a report (more than 100 A4 pages) that includes lists of all the mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, butterflies, dragonflies, beetles, grasshoppers & crickets and vascular plants ever recorded the Picos de Europa, plus summaries of each of these groups and an eight-page introduction to the natural history of these mountains. If you would like to purchase a copy, the price is 17.50€, excluding postage and packaging; alternatively, a copyrighted PDF document sent by email costs 11.50€. Please contact Teresa for further details or to place your order.

Teresa Farino - Contact Details

Address: Apartado de Correos 59
39570 Potes
Cantabria
Spain

 
E-mail:
Office: (+34) 942 735154
Mobile: (+34) 656 337129
English Iris
Iris latifolia
 
Female Capercaillie
Tetrao urogallus cantabricus
 
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