The black pine, whose scientific name is Pinus uncinataIt is a kind of conifer typical of the mountains, where temperatures remain mild in summer and autumn, and cold during the rest of the year. These conditions are those found in the Sierra de Gúdar, in Teruel, in northern Spain.
However, Climate change threatens this beautiful species while allowing another, the (Pinus sylvestris), better known as albar pine or scots pine, more typical of areas with warmer climates, replace it.
The black pine, the southernmost pine species in Europe, has found its refuge in the mountains of Sierra de Gúdar. This is where the first botanists described it in 1941, and today, just a few decades later, it is in danger. Its population is distributed in two nuclei: the first, of about 40 hectares in the shadow of the Peñarroya peak -between 1900 and 2028 meters-, and the other of about 200 hectares in the Alto del Conventillo area..
If climate change softens environmental conditions, the (Pinus sylvestris) would gain ground by Pinus uncinataNot only because it adapts much better to areas with a mild and even hot climate, but also because its growth rate is faster. In addition, it could easily hybridize, which would reduce the population of pure black pines.
To avoid this, technicians from the Department of Rural Development and Sustainability of the Government of Aragon have mapped the black pine forest using GPS, analyzing all the plant species that live in it. In addition, they have studied the evolution of the pine forest and have taken measures for their conservation through forest management in the Mountains of Public Utility.
Since 1992 this part of Spain has been included within the Natura 2000 Network of the European Union, and that is, according to experts from the Government of Aragon, the black pine is »a biogeographic gem»To be protected.