Arcipelago Toscano

The Tuscan Archipelago National Park was created in 1996, with an extension in 1997, and protects the seven islands of the archipelago — Elba, the largest and most varied; Gorgona, the smallest; Capraia, the most remote; Pianosa, the flattest; Montecristo, a nature reserve since 1971 and the most intact; and Giglio and Giannutri, the southernmost — as well as several islets and rocks scattered between Tuscany and Corsica. It is the largest marine park in the Mediterranean: around 78% of its area is sea and only 22% land, with some 17,900 hectares on land and some 56,800 at sea.

The geology of the islands is very varied: Capraia is volcanic, while Elba and Giglio are fundamentally granitic, and that diversity translates into different landforms and landscapes on each. The archipelago has always acted as a refuge and a link between the Sardinian-Corsican system and the mainland, which has favoured the appearance of highly specialised species during the periods of isolation. Twenty-two natural habitat types and 37 rare or endemic animal species of Community interest have been identified, among them the peregrine falcon and the Mediterranean horseshoe bat. The dominant vegetation is Mediterranean scrub, with surviving holm oak woods in some sectors of Elba and chestnut groves in the mountains, an element uncommon on an island.

Human presence is very ancient and has profoundly transformed the original vegetation: there are some thirty prehistoric sites, numerous Etruscan sites linked to mining, remains of Roman maritime villas on Elba, Pianosa, Giannutri, Giglio and Capraia, and Pisan and Genoese fortresses. In 2003 UNESCO recognised the Isole di Toscana Biosphere Reserve, extended in 2015 to take in the seven islands and a broad stretch of sea, with ten municipalities involved and more than 30,000 permanent residents. Part of the area also forms the Pelagos Sanctuary for Mediterranean marine mammals.