Natte Cork Oak Woodland
The cork oak woodland of Bergeggi, which is private property, is the largest cork oak woodland of the middle-western Liguria.
Situated on the south-eastern slope of the municipal territory, it will be transformed into a provincial protected area (L.R. n. 3/1999, DGP 290/64038 of 7/11/2000).
The station extends itself on the slopes of Mt. Rocchetto, between 250 and 200m asl, mainly on a schist substratum.
The cork oaks are organized in more or less thick nuclei, together with Quercus pubescens or, towards the edges of the area, in isolated specimens. Where the ground is deeper, the individuals of Quercus suber have a rather big size (height: 9-10m, trunk diameter: about 40cm) and present a strong renewal.
The station might have had in the past a larger extension, since other cork oaks are widespread in the adjacent urbanized area near the colony of S. Sebastiano.
The cork oak is recognized as a particularly valuable botanic species, since it grows and develops only in particular climatic-ecological conditions; for this reason its distribution in the Mediterranean basin is very irregular.
