The Sierra de Illón and Foz de Burgui Conservation Area is located in northeastern Navarre, on the border with Aragon. It encompasses the entire Serra de Illón, including Foz de Burgi, with the exception of the Eska River and the Plana de Sasi. The area’s relief is marked by the large, superimposed and faulted anticlines to the south that make up the Leire and Illón mountain ranges. These have steep south-facing fronts and gentle north-facing faces. The tectonic complexity of the area has given rise to a network of plateaus, forested formations, estuaries, ravines, cliffs, and hanging valleys, with significant karstification.
ZEC Serra de Illón e Foz de Burgui – ES0000124
OVERVIEW
Area (ha): 4.701,61 ha
Natura 2000 Code: ES0000124
Other protection statuses according to national or regional legislation:
Within the territorial scope of the SAC, other protection statuses are included in accordance with national or regional legislation. The SAC includes two Nature Reserves in the Network of Protected Natural Areas of Navarre: Foz de Benasa (RN-17, 160.52 ha) and Foz de Burgui (RN-18, 197.27 ha). The SAC also has its own Management Plan: Provincial Decree 52/2014, of July 2, which designates the Site of Community Importance “Sierra de Illón and Foz de Burgui” as a Special Conservation Area and approves its Management Plan.
CURRENT SITUATION AND CONSERVATION ACTIONS OF THE PROJECT
Most of the SAC is occupied by deciduous forests (42%), coniferous forests, mainly Scots pine (32.5%), and sedges and scrublands (22%). The SAC area is completed by mesoxerophilous pastures (2%), stony ground (1%), and cereal crops (0.5%).
The majority of the land belongs to communal property of local authorities (71.23%), while 26.69% is private land. The Cañada dos Roncaleses, which crosses the ZEC through Ollate and Paco de Illón, on the border between Navascués/Nabaskoze and Burgui/Burgi, accounts for 0.50%. The remaining 1.58% is made up of riverbeds, roads, and public footpaths.
The SAC is home to a small area of the Natura 4020* network (2.79 ha, 0.94% of the total), which is clearly in decline due to the abandonment of livestock farming and the shift toward forest habitats. The actions to be carried out in the Serra de Illon and Foz de Burgui SAC (ES0000124) will consist of improving its structure and future prospects by protecting it from anthropogenic conditions.