Italy

Italy has a wide range of landscapes, from its mountainous terrains in the north including the Alps, the large Po valley and a backbone of the Apennine mountains to an extensive coastal area, including the two largest in the Mediterranean, Sardinia and Sicily. Italy has a terrestrial area of over 300,000km² and a marine area close to 58,000km². It is bordered by 6 neighbouring countries. The highest point is Monte Bianco reaching a height of 4,809m on the French border. Italy has a population of 59 million people and a population density of 201.3 people per km².

or land covered by protected areas

of marine waters

covered by protected areas

species protected

under EU law

habitats protected

under EU law

Protected areas in Italy cover a total of km² on land and km² at sea.

Percentage of area covered by protected areas

Currently, of terrestrial area of Italy is designated as protected areas, which is below the EU value of 26.4%. The EU Biodiversity Strategy has set a target of reaching 30% protected area coverage at the EU level by 2030. In the marine waters of Italy, protected areas coverage is currently only at , which is significantly lower than the EU value of 12.1%.

Number of protected areas

Italy has a total of protected areas, comprising sites designated under national laws and recognized as Natura 2000 sites. These Natura 2000 sites are designated under the Birds Directive, encompassing Special Protection Areas, and the Habitats Directive, encompassing Sites of Community Importance. Many sites are designated under both Directives.

Number of protected areas

Protected areas designated

under national laws

Designated sites

in the Natura 2000 network

Distribution of protected areas between national designations and Natura 2000

In Italy, more than a half of the protected areas in the terrestrial environment are designated exclusively as Natura 2000 sites. The rest consists mainly of Natura 2000 sites overlapping with national designations, with a smaller portion covered solely by nationally designated areas ( ).

Spatial distribution of protected areas network

Protected areas designated under national laws

Designated sites in the Natura 2000 network

Size distribution of protected areas network

The majority (37%) of terrestrial protected areas in Italy are 1-10km² in size and the proportion of smaller protected areas (less than 1km²) is 24%, which is lower than the EU average. About 2% of terrestrial protected areas are larger than 1,000km². The distribution is similar in the marine waters of Italy, with the majority of marine sites being 10-100km².

Natura 2000 sites

Natura 2000 sites in Italy cover species and habitats from the nature directives. The number of species and habitats protected in each site varies depending on the location of the site, the biodiversity in the region, the designation being used, and the features the site is being created to protect.

Species protected in Italy under EU law fall under the Habitats and Birds Directives. Italy hosts protected under the Habitats Directive, which is approximately 25% of the total of the Habitats Directive’s species and protected birds, which is approximately 65% of the species protected under the Birds Directive.

species protected under EU law

species under the Habitats Directive

species under the Birds Directive

Conservation Status of species: Habitats Directive

In Italy, of species assessments indicate a good conservation status, while the EU average corresponds to 27.5%. The proportion of assessments indicating bad conservation status is reaching , compared to the EU average of 20.6%.

Protected species composition by taxonomic group

In Italy, the distribution of protected species across taxonomic groups highlights the prominence of birds, comprising the largest proportion at 46.6%. They are followed by vascular plants, accounting for 16.3% of protected species, and mammals, representing 9.4%.

Conservation Status by Taxa

In Italy, the assessment of species groups reveals that reptiles have the highest proportion of species with a good conservation status, standing at 66.6%. Following behind are arthropods, with 53.3% of species in good conservation status. On the other hand, fish species have a big share of species with a bad conservation status, standing at 58.9%.

Habitats protected in Italy under EU law fall under the Habitats Directive. Italy hosts habitat types, which is approximately 56.7% of the total of habitat types protected by the Habitats Directive.

habitats protected under EU law in Italy

Conservation status of habitats

In Italy, only 9.8% of habitats assessments indicate a good conservation status which is below the EU average of 14.7%. A significant proportion of assessments, amounting to 47.1%, indicate a poor conservation status, while habitats assessments reporting bad conservation status are 38.8%, above the EU average of 35.8%.

Protected habitat composition by group

In Italy, the group of protected habitats with the largest number consists of forests, accounting for 29.5% of the total. Following behind are coastal and salt-tolerant habitats, encompassing 12.8% of the protected habitats.

Conservation status by group

In Italy the assessment of habitat groups reveals that heath and scrub have the highest proportion of good conservation status, standing at 54.5%. Following behind are coastal habitats, with 26% of habitat types in good conservation status. On the other hand, dune habitats exhibit the highest percentage of habitat types with a bad conservation status, reaching 88.2%, while freshwater habitats also have a significant proportion of habitat types in bad conservation status at 66.6%, followed by bogs, mires and fens that have a proportion in bad conservation status reaching 61.1%.

Italy is predominantly characterised by two main types of ecosystems: agroecosystems, which cover 43.2% of the country, followed by forest ecosystems occupying 40.8% of the land area. However, Italy has relatively smaller proportions of heathlands (8.2%), urban areas (7.1%), rivers and lakes (0.8%), and wetland ecosystems (0.05%).

In terms of the protected area network, forests constitute the largest portion, covering 54.1% of the protected areas. Agroecosystems make up 28.9% of the protected areas, reflecting the importance of conserving and managing agricultural landscapes for biodiversity. Heathlands contribute to 13.8% of the protected areas, while urban areas represent 1.5%. Rivers and lakes account for 1.5%, and wetlands comprise 0.2%.