Animals

CONSERVATION, AWARENESS AND EDUCATION

Within the exotic and wild diversity, many gardens of the Romantic era contained collections of animals (deer, pheasants, peacocks…). In the case of Parc Samà, and continuing with the idea of the founder of the park Salvador Samà i Torrens to recreate a garden that would transport the visitor to colonial Cuba , the park housed different collections of animals among which the birds brought from Central America stood out.
Today’s garden wants to recover this dimension, focusing on its founder’s hobby in collecting ornamental birds from various geographical origins, but adapting this concept to the 21st century, where animal welfare is the absolute priority.

The zoological collections of Parc Samà also have the vocation of being a powerful tool for raising social awareness of environmental problems, the conservation of endangered species and scientific research. We want to serve as a classroom of education and conservation , where the visitor can admire, enjoy and understand up close the wonderful world of birds, mammals and reptiles, once again building a zoological collection that combines exotic fauna and Mediterranean fauna.

Walking through Parc Samà you will most likely come across peacocks, guinea fowls, squirrels and other inhabitants of this botanical garden.

LOCATE THE ANIMALS ON THE MAP

THE PARC SAMÀ FAMILY

MARIANAO AVIARY

Come in to admire, enjoy and understand up close the wonderful world of exotic birds. The Marianao Aviary is designed to immerse the visitor in the world of exotic birds, recreating the feeling of being in the tropical jungle. The overhang, built on the basis of the old deer enclosure, eight meters high, includes vegetation and water courses.

The aviary also aims to be a powerful tool for raising social awareness of environmental problems, the conservation of endangered species and scientific research.

On the map >> Marianao Aviary

FALLOW DEER FOREST

The fallow deer is a species native to the Mediterranean region: southern Europe, the Middle East and Asia Minor. It is a medium-sized cervid: smaller than the deer and larger than the roe deer. The fur of adults is reddish with white spots in summer and more grayish in winter.

Males are larger than females and have branched, spade-shaped horns that they renew every year between the months of March and April. From October to the beginning of November the mating period occurs, known as the snoring.

On the map >> Fallow Deer Forest

OLD MONERY

Eclectus, Derbi psittacula, Barraband parrot, sun aratinga, Amazon albifrons and parakeets; All of them are different species of small psittaceans that belong to the family Psittacidae, of the order Psittaciformes. They come from diverse geographical origins, distributed in warm tropical and subtropical areas of the Southern Hemisphere, mainly in America, but also in Australia and New Zealand.

They are birds with common characteristics; Their beak, strong, robust and curved downwards, is the main characteristic of this family and they use it as a third leg that helps maintain stability and as a powerful weapon. These are birds that live in trees, an environment in which they operate easily thanks to their zygodactyl claws and although they are good fliers, many prefer to move by climbing and jumping through the trees.

They are very sociable animals, they almost always live in groups and communicate both by gestures and orally.

The old monería is the most representative building of those destined to house the original private zoo. The Marquis of Marianao had these rooms and cages built around the botanical enclosure with the same materials as the rest of the facilities, with limestone (rockery) and disguising the gripping elements with iron sulfate, in the style of 19th-century waterfalls.

On the map >> Old Monería

PIGEON SPACE

Since ancient times and throughout history, the wild pigeon, Rock pigeon or Columba livia , has been used and highly appreciated by various civilizations. The wild species through multiple crossings gives rise to the domestic pigeon, with a large number of shapes and colors, including white.

They are gregarious birds with an enormous orientation instinct so that they are capable of returning to their place of origin across hundreds of kilometers. It is due to a great ability: magnetoreception , which is the ability of some living beings to perceive the direction and meaning of the Earth’s magnetic fields.

On the map >> Espacio de Palomas

OLD PHEASANT

Near the entrance is the old pheasant farm, where a family of white peacocks currently lives .

They are white due to a genetic mutation called leucism (they are not albino), and in this case the males are the same color as the females. The males have an impressive tail made up of about 150 feathers that, when spread, form a majestic fan.

On the map >> Old pheasant farm

CONSERVATION PLANS

We collaborate with different entities and participate in different plans for the conservation of threatened species and the reinforcement of the population of wild species.

MEDITERRANEAN TURTLE

On the map >> Mediterranean turtle

We participate in the Mediterranean turtle recovery plan for the breeding and reproduction of this endangered native species

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Faisán Dorado

On the map >> Golden Pheasant

EP5000 Golden Pheasant breeding project and since 2021 in the European Golden Pheasant Studbook, a breeding program promoted by the EAZA.

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Erizo MORUNO

On the map >> Moorish hedgehog

We collaborate in the project to strengthen the population of wild hedgehogs, through the Moorish hedgehog, a species of Mediterranean distribution.

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CAVALRY DONKEY SHELTER

The Samà Park is an authorized Center for Donkey Shelters , being able to house in its facilities animals that have been abandoned or confiscated.

The original stables of the Parc Samà rest residence in 1881 have transformed their purpose, currently functioning as a donkey shelter.

The donkey (Equus africanus asinus) is a domestic animal of the equidae family, which has been used for more than 6,000 years as a pack and work animal; But the appearance of agricultural machinery has led to a considerable decline in their populations and in some cases when they are no longer useful, they are abandoned, mistreated and treated cruelly. Parc Samà’s commitment is to offer our help and permanent shelter to all those donkeys who need it, contributing to their well-being.

On the map >> Stables. Donkey shelter

PARROT PAVILION. ENABLED TRAFFIC CENTER OF COTORRA ARGENTINA

THE Samà Park is a Transit Center Enabled for the Collection of Argentine parakeets (Myopsita monachus), a species listed as an invasive exotic species based on Royal Decree 630/2013 that regulates the Spanish Catalog of Invasive Exotic Species.

From October 2021 and after a positive report from the Department of Climate Action, Food and Rural Agenda, it is authorized for the temporary collection of Argentine parakeets.

They are specimens collected from nearby municipalities, which were causing problems in public spaces and it is believed that they are pets that have escaped or that have been released intentionally.

The animals are collected in the Pabellón de los loros or Antigua lorería , an original installation of great artistic value, with a wooden frame and covered on both sides of ceramic tiles.

On the map >> Pabellón de los loros. Viewpoint of Heracles

BIRDS

Come in to admire, enjoy and understand up close the wonderful world of exotic birds at the Marianao Aviary; Visit the macaws and discover the species of ducks that live in Parc Samà.