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Plants

The estrella de las nieves, or ‘star of the snows’ (Plantago nivalis) (Photo: Kiersten Rowland); the endangered Sierra Nevada poppy (Papaver lapeyrousianum)

Some 116 of the region’s 2100 catalogued plants are threatened, and 80 of these are endemic to the Sierra Nevada massif.

Sierra chamomile (Artemisia granatensis) is endemic and is on the critical list due to years of being over-collected for its reported healing properties. Another endangered species is the Sierra Nevada poppy (Papaver lapeyrousianum), which can only be found in certain areas close to the summit of Mulhacén.

Some of the most fragile and unique ecosystems in the mountain range are the borreguiles (high meadows) – home to many of the endemic species, where 35% of the plant species are not found anywhere else in the world. During the spring you’ll find a beautiful carpet of alpine flowers and the only carnivorous plant that grows in the Sierra Nevada: the Sierra Nevada Tirana (Pinguicula nevadensis), which grows in the wettest areas above 2500m. Depending on snow melt, it blooms in July and catches insects with its sticky leaves.