Ojo de Guareña is a Karstic formation situated on the
south slope of the Cantabrian Range, where stands a rocky
cut composed of limestones and dolomites, over an impermeable
substratum of marls and argillaceous limestones. The characteristic
caves were hollowed out by the Guareña and Trema rivers,
whose waters leaked into the big rock during the Upper Cretaceous
period.
This spectacular scenery is home to beeches and birches
in the north, and holm oaks and gall oaks in the south.
The vegetation inside the caves includes algae, fungi and
bacteria.
This Nature Monument is inhabited by a variety of birds
of prey including vultures and Egyptian vultures. The forest
is home to foxes, wild boars and wildcats. But the most
interesting fauna is found inside the caves, more than 50
species of invertebrates, four of which are quite unique.
The historical aspect adds to the biological and geomorphological
values of Ojo Guareña. The caves contain several
Prehistorical sites that allow to follow the evolution of
human religiosity -from the Paleolithic to the present-
in great detail. The Hall of the Tracks show the footprints
made by our ancestors approximately 15,000 years ago.
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