Bosco Nordio Nature Reserve

The Bosco Nordio is located on the oldest sand dunes in the northern Adriatic and is a remnant of the extensive wooded area that characterised much of the Veneto coastline in the past. The origin of the dunes dates back some 2,000 years, thanks to sediments transported by the Adige and Brenta rivers, and the forest has existed here for more than 1,000 years, when the Po delta began to push towards the coastline.

The landscape of the Po Valley, as it appears today, is due to profound changes that over time have radically altered the vegetation, gradually transforming its face. The climate, with its slow but constant action, and man, with more radical and rapid interventions, have contributed to these alterations.

The area now known as Bosco Nordio, located near the city of Chioggia, was once known as Fosson or Ceretto and in 1565 passed into the hands of the Nordio family. In 1959 it was sold to the former Azienda di Stato per le Foreste Demaniali, becoming a Riserva Naturale Integrale in 1971. Today it is managed by Veneto Agricoltura.

The area has a flora typical of Mediterranean areas, characterised by the presence of holm oaks, madder, clematis, butcher's broom, prickly asparagus, Mediterranean honeysuckle, phillyrea and oak, with specimens that can exceed 20 metres in height.

A great variety of fauna populates the Reserve, thanks to its biodiversity and special geographical location. Many mammals inhabit this environment, such as the fallow deer, porcupine, hare, badger, weasel, marten, land and water vole, hedgehog and European mole.

Various birds also nest here, such as the hawk and the long-eared owl, the wryneck, the nightingale, the cuckoo, the stonechat, the stonechat, the corn bunting and the red-backed shrike, while the species that have settled permanently are the pheasant, owl, little egret, grey heron, woodpigeon, tawny owl, black woodpecker, robin, song thrush, river nightingale, titmouse, great tit and jay.