Tower of Los Lobos - Cabo de Gata-Níjar Geopark (photographer: María del Mar Molina)
Phoenicians, romans and arabs successively occupied this territory leaving a rich and varied cultural heritage. After the expulsion of the Moors was practically depopulated and under the continuous threat of pirates of North African origin, reason why, entered the XVII century, began to design a device of towers and fortresses by the coast that reached its maximum development during the reign by Carlos III.
Around the water the first human settlements were created and small orchards were designed that still today stand out against the dominant ocher tones. The scarce yields of rainfed crops motivated the occupation of large areas of land, creating the cereal steppe, livestock sustenance and habitat of recognised importance for a unique flora and fauna. In its landscape are recognised linear structures made of stone, time and effort, which cut off the runoff and capture the scant water that slides along its sloping hillsides.
Fishery and mining resources also influenced the current distribution of cores. The water and wind culture has left a legacy of infrastructures such as cisterns, tanks, wells, water canals, or ditches, as well as windmills and norias, fundamental milestones in the historic configuration of the landscape. Many of these elements remain functional to this day and others have been rehabilitated by the administration in recent years.
The mining heritage outstands over any other, especially Rodalquilar and Aguamarga, although we find samples throughout the area. Precisely it was next to the nucleus of Rodalquilar where gold it was discovered for the first time in 1883, although it will not be until the twentieth century when its exploitation materialises. After the cessation of the gold activity in Rodalquilar, the Ministry of Environment purchased the property owned by the National Institute of Industry, making it a nerve centre for the management of the entire protected area.