Landscape

In terms of the geomorphological aspect, the Serre Landscape is characterized by natural forms that configure highly recognizable landscape areas.

Marine terraces – surround the Serre in different areas and at different heights, with the appearance of more or less wide plateaus, hemmed in by escarpments: particularly evident are those in the municipalities of Laureana di Borrello, Arena and Dasà.
Vast, shallow depressions open up between the mountains that housed real lakes in the Quaternary: these are the Lacina plain (near Brognaturo) and the plains (or basins) of Serra San Bruno, Chiaravalle, Mongiana and Fabrizia. The main human communities of the Serre were settled on these depressions because of the ease of crossing and availability of water.

The Ionian slopes of the Serre are marked by the “cuts” of the fiumare: these are wide gravelly riverbeds, dry for most of the year (except for the autumn flood period) that fan out at the dejection cones, on the shoreline.

In addition, the Serre landscape is characterized by slopes and elevations covered by vast expanses of forest that constitute some of the most important forest complexes in the region. The forest formations present are: Mediterranean scrub, located mainly in the lower areas (poorly represented in the territory of the Park); chestnut groves, present at higher altitudes (partly derived from old fruit chestnut groves and sometimes of artificial origin, which provide poles and timber for local crafts and agriculture); finally, the beech and fir forests, which cover all the major elevations up to the summit, in a sector that for the grandeur of the tree stand, the wealth of wildlife, and the presence of numerous streams appears to be of rare beauty.