Rudina forest, a treasure trove of biodiversity
The last vestige of Mediterranean forest on the Ionian slope of Aspromonte.
Where
Where is the forest of Rùdina
Between the ghost town of Ferruzzano and Fiumara La Verde, at the gateway to Aspromonte, the Rùdina Forest is the last bastion of biodiversity on the Ionian side of Calabria, so precious that it has been recognized by the European Union as a SAC, Special Area of Conservation.
Why it's special: biodiversity in the Rudina forest
Nearly two hundred hectares of low-elevation Mediterranean forest, which, thanks to its northern exposure, also becomes an ideal habitat for trees typical of the mountain range. Thus, holm oak (Quercus ilex), cork oak (Quercus suber), Virgil's oak (Quercus virgiliana), manna ash (Fraxinus ornus, the manna tree) grow side by side here, but also trees accustomed to higher altitudes, such as farnetto (Quercus frainetto) and black hornbeam (Ostrya carpinifolia), As many as 310 species live in the Rudina forest, some of them rare or endangered: one among them, the royal fern (Osmunda regalis). There is no shortage of rare specimens of sylvan vine, clinging to trees.
Not to be missed: the millstones of the Rudina forest.
And the sylvan vine brings us to the palmenti, the ancient vats dug into the stone used in ancient times to extract must from grapes. In the Ferruzzano area, palmenti are incredibly numerous (more than 150!) and in the Rudina forest there are several examples, often camouflaged among the trees, green with moss or filled with rainwater. One of them-quite large and well preserved-is right at the beginning of the little path that leads from the driveway to the picnic area.
Fun fact: the rocks of Zacharia, as red as the Grand Canyon.
Right at the entrance to the forest a true wonder of nature awaits us: between the green of the trees and the blue of the sky stands a high wall of reddish Martian rock. The color comes from the presence of lichens and iron, Santo, our guide, explains. The rock is a peculiar sandstone, with sandy pads where holm oak and mastic trees creep their roots, until they detach prisms of rock that over time form a very fine sand at the base of the wall. Santo also points out to us a gray streak at the base of the wall, near a rift: these are traces of smoke. Perhaps a campfire from an adventurous camper? Not at all! It is a fire that dates back to the Neolithic: the fact that the color is embedded in the rock reveals this to us. Ah, the wonder of being able to read history in nature!
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The Map thanks:
PNRR M1C3 2.1 Attrattività dei Borghi, Linea B Ferruzzano: Borgo del benessere, Int. 12 Hub digitale, CUP J98C22000050006, CIG B701ED11E2
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