Geloi Wetland

Geloi is a stopover site for migratory species that amass in this place that, in Sicily’s Plain of Gela region, is the only one where wetlands form and last up to late spring. This is precisely the reason of its uniqueness and is also why we need to protect it. We imagine a safe place for birds that pass through here, a place where you do not hear hunting shots but bird’s songs. Among the unique traits of Geloi certainly the most important one is the presence of a conspicuous breeding population of Collared pratincole (Glareola pratincola) during the spring. The Collared pratincole population in the Plains of Gela amounts to half the population of the whole Italy and this data alone should convey the importance of establishing a protected area, safe from illegal hunting and bad agricultural practices that affect the nesting of this species. Other notable species to be found in Geloi are, in no particular order, White stork (Ciconia ciconia) with the largest breeding population in Italy at around 40 pairs, Lesser kestrel (Falco naumanni), European roller (Coracias garrulus) with the largest population in Sicily and the Eurasian stone-curlew (Burhinus oedicnemus). For all these reasons, the Plains of Gela area, therefore Geloi as well, is a Special Protected Area (code ITA050012).