Porto Cesareo MPA

Schéma ISEA :

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Territory :

The Porto Cesareo MPA is located between the Towns of Porto Cesareo and Nardò, in which territory there is the Preserve and the Province of Lecce. The MPA is the unique State Marine Preserve of Salento, the biggest of Puglia and the third for its size among those instituted recently in Italy.

Physical characteristic :

The coast of the MPA is very irregular: you can go from calcareous esplanades to sandy beaches, where the coastal dune has a vegetation of shrubs among the gulf. The dunes’ cord, that delimits Porto Cesareo’s beaches, is very high and large. On the dunes grows up the shrubs like the cuddly juniper, the mastic, the myrtle. In this site there are arboreal species and shrubs together, like maquis scrubland olive and mastic. The coast-line of the MPA is characterized by outcropping of low carbonates at the sea level. This rocky coast is interested by karst phenomenon and real caves.

Specificity and importance :

Until the half of the 20th century, in Porto Cesareo marine caves, there was the evidence of presence of the Monk Seal (Monachus monachus). In open sea, where the depth is covered by the deep coralligenous, there coral seaweeds, shoal of amberjacks (Seriola dumerilii) and dolphinfish (Coriphena hippurus), Sciaena umbra and Epinephelus marginatus. Inside caves, there are lobsters, crabs and morays. In addition to the coralligenous, Posidonia oceanica meadows are also abundant.

Threats and Pressures :

Porto Cesareo has got a very important marine activity, formed by 130 professional fisherman with permission and 250 professional fishermen without. The whole activity of professional fishing is concentrated into the MPA. The coast of the MPA, that counts not more of 10.000 inhabitants in winter, while in the Summer time, there is a great flux of tourists: about 100.000 visitors per year recorded by hoteliers and tour operators, coming for recreational activities as scuba and snorkeling.

Ecological characteristics :

Several underwater caves are also interesting naturalistic environment. At the entrance of the caves, there are seaweeds like the Peyssonnelia, (coralligenous). The caves have got populations characterized by the presence of fauna: protozoa, porypherous, molluscs, cnidarians, anellids, arthropods, bryozoans, brachiopods, echinoderms, tunicates and vertebrates. The species more abundant in the zones near the entrance are of incrust type: Agelas oroides, Aplysina cavernicola, Oscarella Iobularis, Chondrosia reniformis and Clathrina sps.

Management :

Area Marina Protetta Porto Cesareo, direzione@ampportocesareo.it

The management body draws up an annual programme of management activities that meet the goals of the founding decree and related circulars from the Environment Ministry.

Geographical position :

The Porto Cesareo MPA is in the East of the Gulf of Taranto, Northern Ionian, 28 km from Lecce, and it is located in the centre of Ionian coast, between Taranto and Gallipoli. The MPA takes care of Porto Cesareo and Nardò, both of Lecce’s Province. The coast of the MPA is limited in the North by Punta Prosciutto and in the South by Tower Inserraglio, with a total of 33km coast.