La riserva naturale della Foresta Umbra

Dario Melissano 30 October 2022

The Foresta Umbra nature reserve is a protected natural area located within the Gargano National Park. It extends for about 15 thousand hectares in the central-eastern area of Gargano, at about 800 meters above sea level. The name umbra derives from the Latin: dark, shady, as it still appears in part today.

Since 2017, its ancient beech forests have been part of the UNESCO heritage.

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The forest is divided into four concentric zones: zone A, zone B, zone C and zone D.

zone A: reproduction area of wild animal species. It is the hidden heart of the forest and public access is prohibited.
zone B: includes the most uncontaminated part of the Umbra Forest where it is strictly forbidden to make disturbing noises, raise your voice or behave in ways that can be perceived by the animal population.
zone C: motor vehicles are prohibited from entering this area, although people are free to move around.
zone D: is the most tolerant from an environmental point of view, as it is the area of the towns included in the forest.

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The Umbra Forest extends across the municipalities of Monte Sant’Angelo, Vieste, Vico del Gargano, Carpino and Peschici.

Three floristic zones can be distinguished:

the highest part of the beech forest (about 84% beech trees, to a lesser extent maples, hornbeams)
the intermediate one of the Turkey oak forest (Turkey oaks and other oaks approximately 45%, beech trees 21%, then hornbeams, maples, lime trees etc.)
below that of the Mediterranean forest with holm oaks and minor species.

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The Umbra Forest is home to a large number of animal species. We can find hares, squirrels, pheasants and small rodents as well as wild boars, roe deer, woodpeckers and weasels. In the thicket it is also possible to spot deer. Fallow deer, foxes, badgers and wild cats are also common.

Many species of birds including the crow, the magpie, the blackcap, the nightingale, the robin and the blackbird. There are numerous diurnal birds of prey such as the sparrowhawk, the kite, the goshawk and the buzzard, and nocturnal ones such as the great eagle owl, the tawny owl, the little owl and the barn owl.

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The Umbra Forest Nature Reserve

Written by Dario Melissano

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