Puntos de Interés
Municipality
Yernes
Yernes is a village in the parish of Yernes y Tameza.
It is located halfway up the slope in the Villalibre river basin.
Legend has it that in order to fix the boundaries of the episcopal conference with Proaza, two bulls (one from each jurisdiction), were made to fight. The bull of Yernes was the winner and the boundary was fixed. These two bulls are depicted on the council's coat of arms, below the cross of the angels of Oviedo.
Located in the village is the Aula de la Naturaleza de la Fundación Vital, an educational centre offering activities on renewable energies and nature encounters.
Surrounding the Aula is the Arboretu, a botanical garden dedicated mainly to trees and other woody plants.
The Arboretu is made up of three stands, each one corresponding to a different geographical area, so there is one for the European area, another for the Peninsula and the last one dedicated to other continents.
In this botanical garden, visitors can find as many as 86 different species of plants, including Lebanese cedar (Cedrus libani), Himalayan cedar (Cedrus deodara), giant sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum), Atlas cedar (Cedrus atlantica), ginkgo biloba (Ginkgo biloba) and various species of cypress (Cupressus spp.) among others.
The natural flora of the village includes pedunculate oak trees (Quercus robur), sweet chestnut trees (Castanea sativa), arable land and pastures in the lower areas, to European beech trees (Fagus sylvatica), holly trees (Ilex aquifolium), ash trees (Fraxinus spp.) and common yew trees (Taxus baccata) in higher areas. Holly oaks (Quercus ilex) are also characteristic in the sunniest areas.
The village is also rich in fauna, which includes wild boar (Sus scrofa), European wild cats (Felis silvestris), wolves (Canis lupus), Egyptian vultures (Neophron percnopterus), least weasels (Mustela nivalis), garden dormice (Eliomys quercinus), common genets (Genetta genetta), barn owls (Tyto alba), common buzzards (Buteo buteo), hares (Lepus spp.), red foxes (Vulpes vulpes), red deer (Cervus elaphus) and the occasional brown bear (Ursus arctos).
The patron saint festivities of Yernes are held in honour of Saint Anthony on 13th June, and Our Lady of the Rosary on the first Sunday in October.