Introduction
At this point, you cross the upper part of the riera, one of the places where original vegetation still remains: the holm oak forest.
Streams are the best places to enter the holm oak woodland that once covered the shaded slopes of these ranges. In this dark forest, often limiting the growth of other plants, trunks and canopies are covered with arítjol.
Arítjol is a climbing plant with heart-shaped leaves and spiny stems. Its red berries are very attractive but highly toxic, causing vomiting, diarrhea and a significant decrease in red blood cells.
At ground level, periwinkle, butcher’s broom, rogeta and ivy are typical of humid holm oak forests. In clearings like this one, the bramble thicket becomes dominant.
These areas are true oases where wildlife finds shelter, food and breeding sites. Woodpeckers, jays, tits, finches, blackbirds and nightingales fill these small jungles with life.