Spanish Fir

Appearance

''Abies pinsapo'' is an evergreen conifer growing to 20–30 m tall, with a conic crown, sometimes becoming irregular with age. The leaves are 1.5–2 cm long, arranged radially all round the shoots, and are strongly glaucous pale blue-green, with broad bands of whitish wax on both sides.

The cones are cylindrical, 9–18 cm long, greenish-pink to purple before maturity, and smooth with the bract scales short and not exserted. When mature, they disintegrate to release the winged seeds.

The Moroccan variety, ''Abies pinsapo'' var. ''marocana'' or the Moroccan fir, differs in the leaves being less strongly glaucous and the cones slightly longer, 11–20 cm long.

Distribution

In Spain, it appears at altitudes of 900–1,800 metres in the Sierra de Grazalema in the province of Cádiz and the Sierra de las Nieves and Sierra Bermeja, both near Ronda in the province of Málaga.

In Morocco, it is limited to the Rif Mountains at altitudes of 1,400–2,100 metres on Jebel Tissouka and Jebel Tazaot.

Status

Spanish fir, despite the best conservation and reforestation efforts that have greatly increased its abundance, still has several threats such as fires, urban projects, erosion, excessive visitors and tourists, etc.