What Kind Of Animals Are In Italy

Italian republic's wild spaces abound with beautiful creatures, as Jenny Oldaker discovers on an exploration of the nation's most fascinating wildlife… which ones take y'all spotted on your travels?

Italy is not a country to which travellers flock for its wild fauna – its wealth of cultural, gastronomic and historic attractions tend to provide a greater depict. But this really shouldn't be the case every bit the country has spectacular countryside and a staggering range of wild fauna.

Anna Tyler, southern Europe destination editor for Solitary Planet agrees. "While not a well-known destination for wildlife spotting, travellers who venture into some of Italy's wildest national parks might be surprised by what they could spot. Bears and wolves still roam the dense forests of the Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise National Park, while the Dolomiti Bellunesi National Park is home to the chamois (function-goat, function-deer) and even the rare Eurasian lynx."

It'southward fourth dimension to polish a spotlight on Italy'due south natural treasures, every bit we discover 10 of its most fascinating creatures…

1. Italian wolf

This beautiful Italian native can be found in the Alps and Apennines and, though they are still relatively low in numbers, the population of this protected species is idea to exist increasing. The wolf is even so unwelcome in many areas but it has enough of admirers, too. Adam Rose, managing director of environmental education organisation Ecowise Italy, is one of them.

He is fascinated past the wolf – indeed, its presence here was part of the reason he moved from England to Piedmont in 2000. "The wolf is a species that embodies, symbolically and literally, the wild, and ecological resilience," says Adam. "Information technology has a deep relationship to humanity and to our relationship with the natural world, and was living in our midst for millennia in Europe, until its virtual eradication over virtually of its European range during the last few centuries.

"Although I've never seen a wolf in the wild, I spend a lot of time in 'their' territory, taking groups and children to experience European wilderness, and take found their tracks and fresh scat and kills," he explains. "What inspires me is the sense I sometimes become, that although I can't see them, they're watching me – information technology'south a very invigorating, exciting feeling!"

ii. Wild boar

It may not be the most elegant animal, just the wild boar definitely deserves a spot inside any Top 10 of Italian wild animals. The boar population is soaring in Italy and this characterful creature is seen as both a menace (ask whatsoever vineyard owner) and as something of a national emblem, which is especially truthful in the region of Tuscany, where boar hunting is a pop sport and the rich, compact pappardelle al cinghiale is a favourite local dish. Further evidence of the boar'southward Tuscan importance can be seen in the 'Porcellino' statuary sculpture that sits in Florence (come across left), alluring hordes of visitors who rub its gleaming snout to ensure a render trip to Florence.

Sweetness, stripy boar piglets abound into substantial adults that can achieve heights of up to 1 metre and weights of around 175kg. They are omnivores that tend to inhabit deciduous forests, and your best take a chance of spotting these largely nocturnal animals is by driving in boar-inhabited areas effectually sunset.

iii. Alpine ibex

If you find yourself in Italy's Gran Paradiso National Park, you may spot ane of the park'south famously sure-footed residents. The Alpine ibex is an fantabulous climber and these wild goats occupy steep, rocky habitats, which brand them inaccessible to predators. You'll find them at cracking elevations, up to effectually iii,000 metres, and their footwork is a wonder to behold – they've been captured on film scaling the nigh-vertical walls of the Cingino Dam in the Park, patently just to bask the salt of the bricks and the lichen betwixt the stones.

Staffan Widstrand, of nature photographers Wild Wonders of Europe, has had the great fortune to watch them in the Gran Paradiso Park. "They are not hunted there at all, so they are remarkably tame and confiding," says Staffan. "This was where the species was saved from extinction. At ane point there were only 63 of them left in the whole earth, in Gran Paradiso. Now there are over 40,000, spreading back over the whole Tall chain."

4. Bonelli's eagle

The Bonelli's hawkeye is a majestic sight, simply one that is sadly rare in Italian republic today. Claudio Celada, conservation director of Italian wildlife clemency LIPU (Lega Italiana Protezione Uccelli) explains that although the species is stable elsewhere in Europe, its status remains precarious in Italy. "At that place are just 40 pairs left, all of them in Sicily," he says. "This species has become a symbol for nature conservation in Italy, and a broad coalition of volunteers is trying to save them from extinction."

As with and so many cases of endangered wildlife, it is humans that present the biggest menace; the main threat is the stealing of chicks from the nests, which are then illegally sold abroad to be trained for falconry.

The good news is that the future looks rosier for the Bonelli'due south eagle, equally Claudio explains: "Cheers to generous back up from LIPU Great britain, in the terminal few years a network of volunteers has been intensively monitoring nests during breeding flavour, to prevent the stealing of chicks." As a result, the Bonelli'southward hawkeye in Sicily is experiencing greater breeding success, and experts are at last hopeful about the bird's prospects on the island.

five. Italian Aesculapian ophidian

Known in Italia as saettone ochirossi, the red-eyed ophidian, this beautiful reptile, which is now recognised as existence distinctly different from the Aesculapian snake establish beyond Europe, is only seen in Sicily and southern Italy, where its considerable length – up to 2 metres – can be spotted coiled into dramatic loops as it basks in the sun, perhaps fresh from a feast on its prey of rodents and small birds.

If yous're seeking a snake sighting in southern Italian republic (the snake's northern limit is idea to be Caserta in the due west and Foggia in the due east), these non-venomous specimens similar to hang out in dry out, open scrub and woodland, every bit well as on rocky walls and slopes. The snakes are likewise increasingly institute in rural gardens and have even occasionally been spotted in urban areas.

vi. Marsican brownish behave

Classified as critically endangered, the Marsican brown comport is one of the rarest bears on the planet. It inhabits the Abruzzo National Park and some surrounding areas, though the population has dropped significantly over the terminal couple of centuries and is now thought to stand up at around but 40 to 50 bears.

Unfortunately, the future of this magnificent animal remains uncertain as these creatures are still at chance due to poaching, poisoning and human being development encroaching on their territory. Marsican brown bears are timid and elusive, just Tom Mabbett of wild animals holiday company Naturetrek says that they see bears on many of their tours in the surface area, and has some tips for sightings:

"I was saw 1 grazing in a meadow whilst leading a tour in the Abruzzo National Park. In May and June in particular the bears come up out of the forests onto the meadows to graze on flowers – this one looked to exist eating dandelions! Later in the year, in August to September, they are above, feeding on nuts and berries."

7. Crested porcupine

The boggling-looking crested porcupine (istrice crestata in Italian) is named for its long head and shoulder quills, which it raises into a crest whenever it feels threatened. Crested porcupine numbers in Italy are growing, and the population is thought to be spreading over an increasingly wide area, non only in Sicily but also across cardinal Italy.

These shy, peaceful creatures, which can grow upwardly to nearly three feet in length, tend to inhabit dense vegetation but, thanks to their relative abundance, they are fairly regularly spotted – equally are their discarded quills, which are long and sharp, with distinctive bands. But though the crested porcupine seems to exist doing well in Italy, you won't see this unusual creature anywhere else in Europe. And it is worth seeking out. Y'all are unlikely to encounter whatsoever creature that looks quite like it!

8. Eurasian spoonbill

Look out for this captivating bird side by side time you're travelling in Italy. The fantastical looking spoonbill is a personal favourite of mine and is an utter delight to spot in the wild. Its slender, gangling frame is like to that of the ever-popular flamingo, and is even closer to the far more than widespread egret. However, this unusual bird has a look that is entirely its own – thanks, in the nearly office, to that crazy looking beak, which gives it its fabulously descriptive proper name.

These waders similar to hang out in shallow wetlands, where their diet is made up of aquatic creatures such every bit insects, worms and modest fish, which they catch by swishing that huge pecker through the water as they wade forth. Spoonbills tin can only be establish in relatively pocket-size pockets across Italy, including the Maremma in southern Tuscany, and parts of Sicily and Puglia, plus a couple of spots in the north of the country.

9. Pyrenean chamois

This pretty chamois is, in many ways, a wildlife success story. "The Pyrenean Chamois was about completely extinct at the end of the 1800s, but the species now has a healthy population of an estimated 25,000," Staffan Widstrand, of Wild Wonders of Europe, explains. And he's fifty-fifty had the adept fortune to see this mountain-based animate being in its natural habitat: "I saw a flock of some 20 in the Abruzzo National Park. They are, like the ibex, very tame and confiding, because there is no hunting here."

This deer-like 'caprine animal antelope' that exists in Italy is actually a subspecies of the Pyrenean chamois known as the Apennine chamois. Like all species of chamois, the creature's status diminished over the by centuries, thank you to humans, who hunted it for its venison-like meat and for the soft 'chamois' leather of its hide. Its time to come survival is by no ways guaranteed and information technology still faces threats, but a programme of captive convenance and reintroduction, likewise every bit strict protection regulations, have helped to heave the animal'southward numbers in Italy and elsewhere.

10. Fire salamander

Perchance the all-time-known salamander species in Europe, and certainly amidst the most distinctive, this reptile is a long-time resident across much of the western side of Italy. Despite its brilliant markings, the burn down salamander is not regularly spotted, spending much of its time hidden away in its forest home, under wood or leaves. These creatures prefer college altitudes, so they inhabit hilly or even mountainous regions, and the best time to grab them out and about is during the evening or night time, when they are more active.

Diet-wise, the fire salamander is partial to anything from insects and slugs to the odd young frog or newt. And if you were wondering near that colouring, this striking black and orange or yellow pattern is a alarm of the salamander's potent toxicity to whatever would-be predator.