Autumn flowers in southern Italy

In 2020 I traveled extensively in southern Italy, from Abruzzo to Calabria and Apulia, visiting a number of touristic localities and national parks (Cilento, Pollino, Murge, Majella) and photographing some interesting late blooms and other wildlife in a rather unexpected time of the year: October.

Three days looking for orchids, birds, butterflies and moths in the Gargano

After my wonderful experience in leading two Naturetrek groups there in 2016 (link), I visited the peninsula of Gargano (Puglia) once again in April 2018, together with my friend Luca Sattin, truly a moth-man. During just three, particularly intense, days we found about 40 species and forms of orchids, 50 species of birds, 20 of butterflies and 75 of moths!

Gargano: the European hot-spot for orchids

I had the pleasure to lead, as ornithologist, two groups of Naturetrek in the Gargano  (Puglia, Italy), where I discovered an unknow treasure: the peninsula hosts a huge variety of orchids (Orchidaceae), with about 80 different species (93 in the last list of the website http://www.orchideedelgargano.it) and many more subspecies and forms.