PANTANI DELLA SICILIA SO

Pantani della Sicilia sud-orientale is a complex system of wetlands located along the South Eastern coast of Sicily, at its Southern end.
Because of their geographic location, being only 100 kilometers away from Malta islands, they represent a fundamental migrating hotspot for many bird species using the central Mediterranean migrating route to and from Africa; they also host important breeding populations of rare and endangered species, such as Marbled duck. For the above reasons, this area can be considered as one of the most important wetlands of central Southern Europe.

The whole area is composed by 10 lagoons showing a wide range of diverse features such as water depth, size, salinity which eventually create ideal conditions for a wide range of different species, hosting quite a rich and articulated biodiversity. Pantani della Sicilia sud-orientale, due to their importance, have been inserted in Natura 2000 network both as SPA (Special Protection Area) and SCI (Site of Community Importance).