The Circeo National Park wildlife

While most Italian national parks are located on the high mountains of the Alps and the Appennins, Circeo is a coastal Mediterranean wilderness on the west coast half way between Rome and Naples. In spite of the number of summer city dwellers, the extensive forests of evergreen oaks together with coastal lagoons and marshes have many excellent spots for birding and hosting other inhabitants. In fact, among the Circeo interesting mammals we find the Badger (Meles meles), the European Polecat (Mustela putorius),

the European Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes), the Weasel (Mustela Nivalis), the Stone marten (Martens foina), crested porcupines (Hystrix cristata), the tiny Common Shrew (Sorex araneus), Dormouse (Muscardinus avellanarius), European Brown hare (lepus europeus), Western Hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus), The European mole (Talpa europaea), Water Shrew (Neomys fodiens), Edible Dormouse (Glis glis), Common Vole (Microtus arvalis) Striped Field Mouse (Apodemus agrarius), Wood Mouse (Apodemus sylvaticus),the largest European bath, The Greater Mouse-eared bat (Myotis myotis), the common pipistrelle (Pipistrellus kuhli), the Noctule Bat (Nyctalus noctula), the Lesser Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus hipposideros) and the Brown Long-eared Bat (Plecotus auritus). Around Fogliano’s Lakes there are a number of domestic Italian water buffaloes.

            Click on Photos to see the photografies of the Park

Of particular interest is the presence of many Insects, Reptiles (the four-lined snake, the European grass snake, the western whip snake, the slow worm, the asp viper, the European pond turtle, the Mediterranean spur-thighed tortoise, Amphibians (the common toad, the common frog, the newt), and Fishes (in the lakes, the grey mullet, the eel, the bass, the gilthead, the white bream, the sole - in the canals, the carp, the tench, the perch). In the Park, the fauna is divided according to different habitats, in virtue of a dynamic balance with all the other environmental elements.

They coincide with the following five natural environments:

- The Lowland forest
- The Coastal dunes
- The Wetlands
- The Forest on the promontory
- The Insular area of Zannone

            Click on Photos to see the photografies of the Park