New Trilobite Model for Ribadesella Museum

Ribadesella made headlines approx. five years ago when a huge fossil trilobite ( Neseoretus Cristani ) was found during construction of one of the two local tunnels for the Cantabrian Highway (Autovía del Cantábrico). The original was put on display for several months at the local museum in the village of El Carmen (Ribadesella), before being shipped off for further study and conservation. This copy, made of epoxy and sawdust, measures 1,2 meters by 60 cm. was made by a local model workshop, Maquetas Lezzago, in Pando (Ribadesella) and took three months to complete.

Bidding for New Bridge in
Ribadesella to Start in 2008

Budget calls for $5.4 Million (U.S.)

The Principality of Asturias has budgeted 3,8 million Euros for the construction of a new bridge for the N-634 across the Sella river in Ribadesella, with bidding for the project expected to take place, according to anonymous sources in the Roads and Infrastructures Dept., in the initial months of 2008. Until the recent local election, the administration of Ribadesella (PP-conservative) and the government of the Principality (PSOE - socialist) belonged to opposing political camps. Approval of any plans for a new bridge in Ribadesella were held up for over ten years in Oviedo, to give time for "appropriate environmental review". The PSOE won a surprise upset victory in the local elections in Ribadesella four months ago. Since then state authorites have been more cooperative, and a positive environmental impact statement was drawn up in September, removing one of the last hurdles before the construction of a new bridge.

More Than 100 Individuals Lived at the Entrance of the Tito Bustillo Cave 12,000 Years Ago

Excavations led by Rodrigo de Balbín are underway in the area where the prehistoric people lived. Researchers have found tools, buried bones and two large trash pits.

The excavations undertaken this year in the Ribadesella Cave of Tito Bustillo have been concerned with the area where the prehistoric population lived 12,000 years ago. Results confirm the hypotheses put forward by Professor of prehistory Rodrigo de Balbín, responsible for the works in the cavern, that within the entrance to the cave a community numbering approximately 100 individuals lived. They lived and worked in a space approximately 50 m long by 50 m wide.

The archaeological site is a large space just to the side of the old entrance to the cave. It was buried under an avalanche, and was not discovered until 2004 by the cave explorer Julio Sarasola, and mapped by Professor Alberto Foyo. It is only scant meters away from the cave's famous painting, and researchers have been working hard to discover its secrets. Numerous tracks and trails show that this was the area chosen by the Magdaleniense people of the late Paleolithic as their home. In addition to sewing needles and bones buried in a manner typical for this time period, researchers are most excited about finding two trash pits. These contain the remains of animals that were eaten, from which the researchers have been able to confirm the high number of inhabitants of the cave.

Highly Organized

More study is needed to confirm the exact number and location of the inhabitants. "This is shown us that the groups were larger than we initially thought. We are not dealing with small tribes or groups but rather much more extensive populations," explained Rodrigo de Balbín. Their immediate living area may have extended to the entire zone of the hillside bluffs of Ardines, that overlook the sella River. "We are becoming ever more certain that they had a high level of organization, that their were relationships between groups, perhaps of a commercial nature." To confirm this, a multiple disciplinary group has arrived to begin a study of the colors used to paint the Tito Bustillo cave, and compare them with the colors used in other case in eastern Asturias, in particular those located near the Sella River. "In collaboration with other teams we have collected samples from the caves of La Güelga and El Buxu, and the highlands of the Sella," explained De Bilbín. As part of this study they have also taken many infrared photos of the caves to compare to one another.

"With this we will be able to determine if the origin of the dyes is the same, if they shared resources, or it came from different locations. This should help us learn more about the relationships between the groups." De Balbín for his part is sure that the entire zone functioned as a single unit and that the populations maintained regular contacts and relationships. "One would assume that they also shared tools, pieces of flint, and other items."

Spanish language source: http://www.elcomerciodigital.com/gijon/20070928/oriente/individuos-vivian-vestibulo-cueva-20070928.html

Maritime Authority to Cede Use of the
Ribadesella Lighthouse to the Public

Possible Use as Museum for New Ocean Preserve?


Source: El Comercio, Juan García, July 28, 2007

The Maritime Authority of Gijón has announced that in September they will hand over the Ribadesella Lighthouse to the local government for as yet unspecified use. The lighthouse perched high on the cliffs of Tereñes immediately to the west of Ribadesella and its surrounding 100,000 sq.ft. of ocean front gardens have until this time been off-limits and closed to the public. The Maritime Authority has completely automated the lighthouse and seeks to save money by handing over the building, which is in need of repairs, and the maintenance of the extensive grounds, to the city administration. Plans are being put forward to locate the new museum for the El Cachucho Maritime Reserve in the building. The El Cachucho is an undersea crater off the coast of Ribadesella, beyond Spanish territorial waters, that has been declared an international maritime preserve. Plans for the museum would include a restaurant with panoramic views. However there are also discussions afoot to put the museum in the former Consumers Protection Building out on the point at the entrance to Ribadesella harbor. Advocates of that plan point out that if the museum were put there it could include public restrooms which are entirely lacking on that end of town.

86 New Parking Spots Created in Ribadesella

Source: El Comercio, Juan Garcia, July 27,2007
The newly elected city administration in Ribadesella has started implementing its new traffic plan. One of the first major changes has been to introduce one-way traffic only on the street calle de Coronel Bravo. This street is on the beach side of Ribadesella and runs from the marina to the beginning of the beach boardwalk. The new traffic flow means that the parking along the right side of the road could be changed from parallel to nose-in, adding space for 55 additional cars. The same thing will be done on the calle de Elías Pando also on the beach side of town, which will add 31 more parking spaces.

Huge 86 lb. Eel Caught in La Ñora

Source: El Comercio, July 16, 2007
The restaurant La Perdiz has obtained a spectacularly large eel weighing 86 lbs. According to the restaurant owner Javier Méndez this maritime monster was caught near La Ñora and measures nearly seven feet long. Even the largest eels seldom weigh over 40 lbs. The eel was served with roasted potatoes and a clam sauce.

Arctic Fish Population Established
in Cantabrian Sea off Asturias

A new fish species has moved into Asturian waters. The Ribbon Fish or Deal Fish (Trachipterus Arcticus) is native to the waters of Iceland and Norway. It is a very slow growing fish, measuring between four to six feet in length, and takes fourteen years to reach sexual maturity. The first example of this exotic species was found in Asturias three years ago by local fish specialty restaurant owner Enrique Rodríguez, when a decomposed body washed up at a local beach. Recognizing it as a species hitherto unknown in Asturias, he called CEPESMA, the Center for the Study and Protection of Maritime Species. Researchers there looked at the stomach contents of the large fish and found several different types of smaller fishes native to the Cantabrian Sea off of Asturias, indicating the fish had lived in the area for some time. In the time since then, researchers at the institute have spread the word about this fish, and 384 examples have been recorded in Asturian waters, with the greatest frequency between June and December. One was caught in Tazones just three weeks ago. The Deal fish is a solitary species and only groups during mating season, which indicates a very large area must now be populated by this species. The director of the center suggests that this might mean a change in ocean currents in bringing colder water into the Cantabrian Sea.

Might we now hope for a return of the great herring shoals that abandoned these waters in the late nineteenth century in one of their periodic but as yet unexplained migrations?

Asturias has the Lowest Birthrate of the 25 Countries in the EU
- But also enjoys the highest life expectancy for women

Source: El Comercio, Laura Fonseca, July 13, 2007

The Principality of Asturias has the lowest birthrate of any region in the twenty-five countries of the European Union, data released yesterday showed. Less than Bulgaria, Switzerland or Macedonia. Asturias isn't simply the least fecund region in all of Spain, but all of Europe as well. The highest birthrate in Europe is enjoyed by Iceland, which in 2004, had 2.04 children per woman. Next in line were Ireland with 1.99 and Norway and Finland with 1.81 each. The European median was 1.5. Asturias was last with 0.98 children per woman. Asturias also had the highest average childbearing age at 31.29 years for the first child. Asturian women have the highest life expectancy in Europe reaching 83.8 years on average.

Fishermen Petition for Right to Kill
Cormorants on the Sella River
- Each bird consumes "between 400 to 500 grams of fish a day"
- The Angler's Society is releasing 200,000 trout spawn this week

Source: El Comercio, Irene García, July 13, 2007

Local fishermen are describing the cormorant as one of the biggest threats to the biodiversity of the Sella River. They are petitioning for the bird to be declared an invasive species when it is found in the upper portion of the Sella River, where its population has been increasing. "It is a maritime species, but population pressures are pushing it up the river," said the secretary of the angler's society El Esmerillón, Juanjo Peruyero, who maintains that the government of the principality must take "drastic action".

Tordo the Horse Pulls Over 500 Kg.

Source: El Comercio, G.F. Buergo, July 9, 1007

Neighbors from the village of San Roque del Acebal turned out for a weight pulling contest on Sunday. The winner was Tordo, owned by Rubén González García, who pulled 538 kg. a distance of 536 m. Runners up in weight and distance were the horses Dama, Orco, Mora, and Cuco.