Campo Imperatore

Campo Imperatore ("Campo del Emperador") es una pradera de montaña o prado alpino formado por una meseta elevada en forma de cuenca , situada sobre el macizo del Gran Sasso , la meseta más grande de la cordillera de los Apeninos . Conocido como el "Pequeño Tíbet", se encuentra en el Parque Nacional Gran Sasso e Monti della Laga , cerca de L'Aquila , en Abruzzo , Italia .

Campo Imperatore es un escenario natural cinematográfico notable; la localización se ha utilizado en más de veinte películas, entre ellas The American , The Name of the Rose , Krull , Ladyhawke , Red Sonja , Il sole anche di notte y L'Armata ritorna .

Campo Imperatore is a tectonic origin shaped by alluviums and glaciers. The plateau, which is 27 km in length and an average of 8 km in width, lies adjacent to the Apennines' highest peak Corno Grande, and Europe's southernmost glacier, the Calderone; also surrounding the plateau are Monte Prena, Monte Aquila, and the Camicia Mountains to the north and Monte Scindarella, Mesola and Monte Bolza to the south.

The plateau's altitude ranges from 1,500 to 1,900 meters. It covers an expanse of approximately 80 km². Campo Imperatore is home to one of Italy's oldest alpine ski resorts. Located on the plateau's western edge, the resort began commercial operation in the 1920s and continues to thrive as a ski resort to this day due to its proximity to Rome (132 km). The resort's hotel became dictator Benito Mussolini's prison in August 1943 with his fall from power until he was freed by German commandos on 12 September 1943. On the eastern side of the plateau is a 4 km cross country ski trail, which is maintained by the nearby town of Castel del Monte.

On the southeastern side of Campo Imperatore are medieval hill towns once ruled by the Medicis, Castel Del Monte and Santo Stefano di Sessanio as well as the ruin of one of Europe's highest fortresses, Rocca Calascio.

In spring, summer and fall, shepherds from these neighboring hill towns maintain herds of sheep, "semi-wild" horses, and cattle in the plateau. The pastures are covered with field grasses and meadowland wild flowers.

Campo Imperatore is also home to the Alpine Botanical Garden of Campo Imperatore. Founded in 1952, the garden is devoted to cultivation and study of some 300 species indigenous mountainous plants, including rare and endangered plant species, among them Vaccinium gaultherioides, Yellow Gentiana (Gentiana lutea), Edelweiss of the Apennines (Leontopodium nivale), and Adonis distorta, all plants that have adapted to Campo Imperatore's environment.

Campo Imperatore es también el hábitat del lobo apenino , el gato montés apenino y el rebeco de Abruzzo . Este último, casi extinto, se está recuperando gracias a un esfuerzo conjunto de WWF Italia y la administración del Parque Nacional del Gran Sasso. Otras especies de fauna silvestre incluyen jabalíes , zorros , culebras y una gran variedad de aves, entre las que destacan águilas reales y halcones peregrinos .

También situado en la meseta, aprovechando la altitud y la ausencia de contaminación lumínica, se encuentra el Campo Imperatore Near-Earth Object Survey (CINEOS), una rama del Observatorio de Roma .

Véase también

Enlaces externos

Jardín Botánico Alpino de Campo Imperatore
Centro de Turismo de Gran Sasso
Centro de esquí Campo Imperatore
Observatorio Campo Imperatore
Una galería fotográfica realizada por un fotógrafo de la UNESCO.