JBCLM | 2010-2026

If the Spanish juniper (Juniperus thurifera) dominates the tree layer on the high calcareous plateaus—where continental conditions become extreme and intolerable for most other tree species (see the description of the Calcareous Plateau Juniper Woodland, p. xx)—at lower elevations, between approximately 1100 and 800 m, this aromatic and exceptionally hard-wooded tree grows alongside other species, especially the holm oak (Quercus ilex subsp. ballota), forming the so-called thermophilous juniper woodlands. These communities also occur on poor soils under strong continental influence, although the climate is somewhat milder, with less severe winters than those of the higher páramos. One of the finest examples of thermophilous juniper woodlands in Spain can be found in the Campo de Montiel region, between the provinces of Ciudad Real and Albacete, with an outstanding expression around the Ruidera Lakes.

In the understory, Juniperus thurifera is accompanied by shrubs typical of holm oak woodlands, such as the Mediterranean buckthorn (Rhamnus alaternus), wild jasmine (Jasminum fruticans) and cade juniper (Juniperus oxycedrus). In more xeric areas appear rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis), phoenician juniper (Juniperus phoenicea), kermes oak (Quercus coccifera), the yellow phlomis (Phlomis lychnitis), and even esparto grasses (Stipa tenacissima).

As in the high plateaus, the main traditional use of these juniper woodlands has been extensive sheep grazing, which has decisively shaped the vegetation landscape. Browsing pressure, understory opening, seed dispersal of Juniperus thurifera, and the promotion of nitrophilous plants have long been processes intimately linked to livestock movement and have played an active role in the dynamics of these ecosystems for centuries.