Even if the Algarve is quite populated, the protected wetlands together with large areas too marginal for farming means there is a varied wildlife in the Algarve and the bordering regions. In total, around 40% of the Algarve enjoys some sort of legal protection.

A lot can be seen by foot from our house: the nearby Ria Formosa is a quite unique landscape with many interesting birds and plants.

As our vineyard has not been doing well, and as we do not know when or where we should make wine we have decided to remove it. In the short term we will just leave most of it for wildlife, but when we get the permission we hope to make a swimming pond - probably during the winter 2012-13.