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Eremo
dei Frati Bianchi
White friars wood
The
wood situated half way between Cupramontane and Poggio Cupro, covers 20 ha
of land. It is very rich in water.
There are in fact about nine spring, three wellsprings and ten streams
that flow into Fosso del Corvo, that in turn flows into Torrente Esinante,
an Esino River affluent.
The wood is crossed by three pathways that lead to the Eremo delle Grotte
o dei Frati Bianchi (Caves hermitage or White Friars Hermitage).
The
wood is one of the last few examples of the forests that would cover Le
Marche in land in the past. It preserves rare wildlife and even species
that risk extintion.
The preservation of those has been possible thanks to the Camaldolesi
Monks (white friars) and monks of the Romita monastery (black friars) that
were careful in exploiting natural resources.
The wood waseven named after them fora while. It was in fact known as
Romitella or Hermit wood.
The
wood has been lately affected by human interventions. 254 different plants
still survive: centuries old Downy Oaks (Quercus
pubescens), European turkey Oak (Quercus
cerris), Black Alder (Alnus
glutinosa), English helm (Ulmus
minor) and also Holm Oak (Quercus ilex),
Poplar
(Populus ssp.) White Hornbeam (Carpinus
betulus); flowers such as snowdrop (Galanthus
nivalis), Wild Violet (Viola
reichenbachiana), Cyclamen (Cyclamen
repandum), Fern (Polypodium vulgare),
English Holly (Ilex aquifolium),
Butcher’s broom (Ruscus aculeatus),
Common St.Johnswort (Hipericum androsaemum)
and “fegatella” (Concephalum conicum).
The presence of rare plants such as Maidenhair (Adiantum),
Red Lylium (Lilium
bulbiferum subsp.),
“arisaro codato” (Arisarum
proboscideum)
Pyramidal Orchid (Anacamptis pyramidalis)
have earned the wood the global safeguard that is typical of Protected
Floristic Areas.
The
wood can be divided in layers: moss-herbaceous layer and bush-tree layer.
A lot of animals live in the wood, but they are distributed non
homogenously in the strata.
Their favourite habitat is in fact the safest for them, where they can
easily hide. Foxes (Vulpes vulpes),
Wild Cats (Felis sylvestris),
hares (Lepus europeus) and
badgers (Meles meles) live the
herbaceous stratum.
The bush stratum is instead populated by birds such as Red-Backed Shrike (Lanius
collurio), blackbirds (Turdus merula)
and wrens (Troglodytes troglodytes).
The inhabitants of the tree strata are mostly mammals: Loirs
(Glys
glys) and squirrels (Sciurus
vulgaris) but also woodpeckers, (Picus
viridis), wall creepers (Sitta
europea), coal tits(Parus sp.),
cuckoos (Cuculus canorus),
goldfinches (Carduelis carduelis)
and nocturnal birds of prey such as little owls (Athene
noctua) and barn owls (Tyto alba).
Eremo
dei Frati Bianchi
History of Eremo dei Frati Bianchi
White friars wood
Hermitage
restoration
Gloria Focante
per
Paradise Possible
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