travel news - Gran Canaria 'saves Diminishing Trees'

Gran Canaria 'saves diminishing trees'

May 13 2008

The island of Gran Canaria is helping preserve one of the rarest species of tree in the whole of Spain, according to new research.

Decimation of the elm tree in the Spanish mainland - due to climate changes and the building of new developments - has meant that the only place in Spain that the tree has flourished is the temperate climate of the Canary Islands.

Visitors to the island can see a range of elm trees which - just like in the UK, where they only exist in the Brighton area - have flourished in both the wilderness and populated areas, Tenerife News Online reported.

A dozen areas in Tenerife and Gran Canaria have been selected for the planting and cultivation of three species of elm to help save the tree from extinction.

There are over 200 elm species across the world, the vast majority in Europe and North America.


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