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Lagoon of Pétrola

Pétrola, Monte Ibérico-Corredor de Almansa, Albacete

1 Villages · 2 Monuments · 1 Nature · 1 Activities · 1 Curiosities · 1 Food and drink

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Lagoon of Pétrola

Nature · Pétrola, Monte Ibérico-Corredor de Almansa, Albacete

The Laguna de Pétrola is a steppe, saline lagoon with hypersaline magnesium-sodium chloride waters, situated next to the urban centre of Pétrola, in the basin of the río Segura, and is one of the most important saline lagoons in Spain. It covers about 343 hectares with a depth of one to two metres depending on the time of year, at 860 metres above sea level. It is home to threatened species such as Limonium thiniense, listed as vulnerable, and is one of the few breeding sites of the greater flamingo in Spain — although it did not breed successfully there until 1999 and 2000, and then not again until 2010 — as well as the white-headed duck and the common shelduck. Because of the abundance of waterbirds, boating is prohibited, and on its shores there is a salt-extraction facility that works by evaporation.

Photo: Santisidro (Public domain)

What to see and do in Pétrola