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Climate and Natural Enviroment in Sicily

The climate is Mediterranean, with hot dry summers and mild wet winters. Distance from the sea and the height of the larger mountains are the causes of sharp differences in climate: on the coastal belt, the average annual temperature is around 19 ºC, which drops to 13 ºC inland. The precipitations are confined mainly to the winter months. Rainfall is low particularly on the low-lying ground round Catania and Gela. Spontaneous vegetation on the coastal areas consists of the evergreen shrubs of the Mediterranean scrub, dominated by citrus and fruit orchards, with vines and olive trees higher up. Woodlands, covering barely 8% of the territory, grow only in a few hilly areas.

Of extreme geomorphologic and natural interest is Etna, the volcano that has exerted such an influence on the landscape, the history and the life of those living in its vicinity, and unlike the other volcanoes, it is famous for a certain turbulence and a tendency to erupt, of ten without warning. One of Etna's outstanding characteristics is the fascinating succession of types of vegetation that grow on its slopes: Mediterranean scrub at a low altitude, which gives way to a series of typically montane plant life farther up the slopes. The lava at the edge of the sea is itself a splash of almost tropical shapes and colours: rock samphire, stock, caper, broom, tree spurge and extravagantly exotic plants such as the prickly pear and Agave, that have perfectly acclimatized. Then comes the carob and olive belt, a few remaining stands of holly oak then, beyond 100 m., the Turkey oak and white oak woods, frequently replaced by thick chestnut woods and a few limited stands of Beechwood. Up the mountain, the pinus laricio predominates, especially in the famous Linguaglossa pinewood, together with the Etna birch and showy Etna broom.

The richest and most interesting forest environment in western Sicily is Ficuzza-Rocca Busambra, south of Palermo, dominated by the majestic limestone Rocca Busambra (1,613 m.), with a quantity of karst phenomena, marshes and small lakes, pastures and meadows, with an ecological variety unique in that part of Sicily.

One of the island's most picturesque coastal environments is Contrada Zingaro, at the heart of the Gulf of Castellammare, towards Capo San Vito, where sheer cliffs of Mesozoic limestone alternate with beautiful tiny coves, with glorious intact seabeds. The vegetation is that of hot dry climates, partly steppe and in part garigue.

One of Sicily's most important wetlands is Pantani di Vendicari, on the Gulf of Noto, near Pachino and Capo Passero, where a wide variety of ecosystems (sea, dunes, rock, scrub, freshwater and salt marshes, ferns) concentrated in a limited area and in contrast with its arid surroundings, make it a place of exceptional scenic and natural interest.

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