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Overview
An excellent birding area covering a range of habitats, the Maremma Regional Park lies on one of the very few stretches of undisturbed coast in Tuscany.
As well as 15km of unspoilt beach and dunes there are coastal marshes around the mouth of the Ombrone River, pine-groves and grassland with scattered olive and oak trees and the low limestone hills of Monte dell' Uccellina.
In addition to an interesting range of breeding species the area attracts many passage birds and wintering waterfowl.
Birds
Notable Species
In spring the extensive marshes at Trappola and the rivermouth attract Black-winged Stilt, Pied Avocet and a variety of other migrant waders including Collared Pratincole, Temminck's Stint and Little Stint, Curlew Sandpiper and Marsh Sandpiper and Whimbrel. Purple Heron can be seen in spring and Great Bittern may be present all year, Greater Flamingo and Glossy Ibis are sometimes present out of the breeding season. Passage raptors include harriers, Osprey and Northern Hobby. Great Spotted Cuckoo is regularly seen in spring. Passerine migrants are numerous and varied with scarcer species such as Red-throated Pipit and Western Black-eared Wheatear regular. Autumn migrants are fewer in number and variety but the globally threatened Slender-billed Curlew could conceivably occur.
Stone-curlew breeds in the more open, drier areas as well as Hoopoe, European Bee-eater and European Roller, and Woodchat Shrike, Red-backed Shrike and Lesser Grey Shrike. Great Reed Warbler and Cetti's Warbler are common nesting birds of the marshes and Little Ringed Plover breeds on the sands. Short-toed Eagle breeds in the hills of Monte dell' Uccellina.
Winter brings Greylag Goose and Greater White-fronted Goose and ducks including Eurasian Wigeon, Gadwall, Common Teal and Northern Pintail.
Diving ducks are scarcer but Common Pochard and Tufted Duck are regular with Ferruginous Duck frequently seen. Offshore, Red-breasted Merganser, Common Scoter and Velvet Scoter are possible.
Other birds to be seen over the sea at this time include Black-throated Diver, Northern Gannet, various gulls and possibly Pomarine Skua. Wintering raptors include Marsh Harrier and Hen Harrier, joined by the occasional Merlin.
Check-list
Birds you can see here include:
Black-throated Diver, Great Cormorant, Northern Gannet, Great Bittern, Western Cattle Egret, Little Egret, Great White Egret, Grey Heron, Purple Heron, Glossy Ibis, Greater Flamingo, Greater White-fronted Goose, Greylag Goose, Eurasian Wigeon, Gadwall, Common Teal, Mallard, Northern Pintail, Garganey, Northern Shoveler, Common Pochard, Tufted Duck, Ferruginous Duck, Common Scoter, Velvet Scoter, Red-breasted Merganser, Goosander, European Honey Buzzard, Short-toed Eagle, Black Kite, Western Marsh Harrier, Hen Harrier, Montagu's Harrier, Eurasian Goshawk, Common Buzzard, Common Kestrel, Merlin, Northern Hobby, Lanner Falcon, Osprey, Common Moorhen, Eurasian Oystercatcher, Black-winged Stilt, Pied Avocet, Stone-curlew, Collared Pratincole, Little Ringed Plover, Ringed Plover, Grey Plover, Northern Lapwing, Sanderling, Little Stint, Temminck's Stint, Curlew Sandpiper, Dunlin, Ruff, Common Snipe, Black-tailed Godwit, Bar-tailed Godwit, Whimbrel, Eurasian Curlew, Spotted Redshank, Common Redshank, Marsh Sandpiper, Common Greenshank, Green Sandpiper, Wood Sandpiper, Common Sandpiper, Ruddy Turnstone, Pomarine Skua, Mediterranean Gull, Little Gull, Black-headed Gull, Common Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Yellow-legged Gull, Sandwich Tern, Great Spotted Cuckoo, Tawny Owl, Long-eared Owl, Common Kingfisher, European Bee-eater, European Roller, Eurasian Hoopoe, Eurasian Wryneck, Green Woodpecker, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Red-throated Pipit, White Wagtail, Dunnock, Common Nightingale, Eurasian Robin, Common Redstart, Whinchat, European Stonechat, Northern Wheatear, Western Black-eared Wheatear, Eurasian Blackbird, Cetti's Warbler, Zitting Cisticola, Moustached Warbler, Sedge Warbler, Common Reed Warbler, Great Reed Warbler, Sardinian Warbler, Common Whitethroat, Blackcap, Wood Warbler, Willow Warbler, Goldcrest, Spotted Flycatcher, European Pied Flycatcher, Eurasian Golden Oriole, Red-backed Shrike, Lesser Grey Shrike, Woodchat Shrike, Common Jay, Common Magpie, Italian Sparrow, Eurasian Linnet, Corn Bunting
Other Wildlife
As well as birds this area has mammals of interest including Red Fox Vulpes vulpes, Badger Meles meles and Wild Boar Sus scrofa, and an introduced and long-established species, the Crested Porcupine Hystrix cristata. Roe Deer Capreolus capreolus and Fallow Deer Cervus dama are very common in the area.
Hermann's Tortoise Testudo herrmanni is also frequently seen and there is a large butterfly to look for in the tree-dotted grasslands, the Great Banded Grayling Brintesia circe.
Site Information
History and Use
To do
Areas of Interest
To do
Access and Facilities
Situated about 15km south of the town of Grosseto, the area can best be explored using Alberese as a base which can be reached by a daily bus (except Sunday) from Grosseto. Accommodation and cycle-hire is available in the village.
Alternatively, drive south from Grosseto heading for Principina a Mare and park in the car-park just beyond the resort.
Walk from here to the beach and south to the rivermouth. Access is limited to parts of the area but on weekends and Wednesdays there is a bus-service into the heart of the park from the Information Centre in Alberese. This allows exploration of a range of habitats between the hills and the beach.
Contact Details
To do
External Links
Content and images originally posted by Steve
