Fauna

Mallorca is no Serengeti — but for birdwatchers, reptile enthusiasts, and marine biology fans, the island has surprisingly much to offer, including several endemic species found nowhere else in the world.

Birdlife

The Eleonora's falcon (Falco eleonorae) is one of the most elegant birds of prey in the Mediterranean. It breeds on Mallorca's steep cliffs and the Cabrera Islands — its hunting technique (catching songbirds in flight during the autumn migration) is spectacular to watch. The monk vulture (Aegypius monachus), Europe's largest bird of prey with a wingspan of up to 2.85 meters, was saved from extinction on Mallorca with great effort. In the 1980s, there were only 20 breeding pairs left — today there are over 40 again, mainly in the Tramuntana around Formentor and Lluc. With luck, you can see them circling above the Cuber reservoir while hiking.

The Balearic shearwater (Puffinus mauretanicus) is Europe's most endangered seabird — and breeds almost exclusively in the Balearics. In the wetlands of S'Albufera (Mallorca's most important bird sanctuary), you can observe flamingos, little egrets, ospreys, and hundreds of migratory bird species.

The Mallorca Midwife Toad

The Ferreret (Alytes muletensis) is Mallorca's most famous endemic animal — a tiny toad (only 3–4 cm in size) known for centuries only as a fossil and rediscovered alive in the gorges of the Tramuntana in 1980. A sensational find! Today, it is bred in conservation programs and released into suitable habitats. It is almost never seen (nocturnal, hides in limestone crevices), but its call — a metallic "Pink-pink" — can be heard in the gorges of the Tramuntana.

Lilford's Wall Lizard

The Podarcis lilfordi is an endemic lizard species of the Balearics, extinct on Mallorca itself (probably due to introduced snakes and cats), but it has survived on offshore islands like the Isla de Dragonera and the Cabrera Islands. On Dragonera, the lizards are so numerous and tame that they climb onto your shoes — a unique experience.