Palmitos Park is a botanical garden, aviary and zoo on the island of Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, Spain.
Geography & climate
The park is located in a countryside area, near Pilancones Natural Park, towards south of the island; about north of the tourist beaches and dunes of Maspalomas, but towards the interior. The park has a humid subtropical climate.
Layout
There is a terrace near a fountain, along a path that leads up to the amphitheater where flying birds of prey perform in shows. Next to the amphitheater there is a snack bar, and a small cafe can be found in the park.
One feature of the park is the great wealth of cacti and succulents. There are over 160 different cactus types, and 1000 palm trees of 42 different types.
Parrot-like birds are well represented in the park, but other types of birds can also be found, including swans and ducks. Overall, there are over 1,500 exotic birds of 230 different species. Many fly freely around the park.
Palmitos Park holds Europe's largest butterfly venue, as well as the biggest Orchid collection on the island.
Near the exit - behind the souvenir shop, one can admire hummingbirds that fly very visibly in front of their food.
Sections of the park
- Butterfly house with (mainly living) butterflies.
- Pond with water birds
- Dolphinarium with 6 dolphins, and live dolphin shows interacting with the audience.
- Dolphin Photo Opportunity where members of the public can have their photo taken while stroking a dolphin (additional fee)
- Swim with Dolphins opportunity (additional fee)
- Glass cages with hummingbirds
- House of orchids
- Terrace near fountain
- Amphitheater with shows with flying birds of prey
- Presentation room with documentaries and shows with trained parrots
- Souvenir shop
- Aquaria with many kinds of fish and other underwater animals
Gallery
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File:20100222-0306 Gran Canaria (1114).jpg|Variety of plants in Palmitos Park
File:Palmitos Park-entrance.jpg|The entrance in 2006, shortly before the fire that destroyed the park
File:PPark Acuario 1.jpg|Tourists watching fish in the aquarium
File:Herichthys carpintis 01.jpg|A herichthys carpintis fish at Palmitos Park
File:Haliaeetus leucocephalus -Palmitos Park, Gran Canaria, Canary islands, Spain -zoo keeper-8a.jpg|A bald eagle during a show
File:Meerkat palmitos park.jpg|A meerkat at Palmitos Park
File:Danaus plexippus IMG 8218 Palmitos Park gran canaria.JPG|A monarch butterfly in the Butterfly House
File:Greifvogelvorführung.jpg|A birds of prey display
File:Gran canaria-881.JPG|A bird show in progress at Palmitos Park
File:White Peacock, Palmitos Park, May 2018.jpg|White Peacock
File:Common Bottlenose Dolphins, Palmitos Park, May 2018.jpg|The Dolphin Show
File:Bald Eagle, Palmitos Park, May 2018.jpg|Bald Eagle in flight
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2007 Gran Canaria forest fires
On July 31, 2007 it was reported in the media that almost 65% of the park was burned due to ten forest fires, and that some exotic bird species - such as the toucan - may have been killed. The forest fires caused evacuations of certain parts of Gran Canaria and Tenerife. A local Forest Ranger was accused of starting the fires intentionally in order to keep him in employment as his contract was due to expire.