The Vendicari Reserve
Located between Noto and Marzamemi, the Vendicari Natural Reserve is a place of natural and historical interest.
It has been inhabited since the Greek era as the tanks/deposits for working fish and the various catacombs and habitations from the Byzantine period testify.
The area of the Vendicari Reserve was a place of strategic importance for the defence of the coast, as well as a place of economic/commercial interest. The proof of this is mentioned in the
Sveva Tower build in the period of the Aragonese for the storage and defence of the magazines where the foodstuffs destined for trade were stored and the Tonnara (tuna catching area) dates back to the 16th century.
The reserve extends about 1,500 hectares and is important due to the presence of bogs which act as places of refuge for a number of species of birds, such as grey herons, storks, flamingos, mallard, gulls, cormorants and black winged stilts.
The rocky coast, sandy coast, Mediterranean scrub, bogs, salt fields and cultivated areas make Vendicari Reserve a very varied coastal zone which is representative of the natural elements that can be found on the coast of South-East of Sicily.