Description of the attraction
The Fiuminisi and Monte Scuderi Nature Reserve, established in 1998, is the kingdom of the Sicilian stone partridge in the "metal" mountains. This is a medium-sized bird of the pheasant family: males weigh only 600 grams and are slightly larger than females in size. Moreover, unlike females, males have spurs on their paws.
This 3,543 hectare protected area in the province of Messina has many surprises for nature lovers: here, at the foot of Monte Scuderi, a wonderful tree-like heather grows along with a fluffy oak tree, covering the valleys and low-lying areas. Have you ever seen a tree with a dark and twisted trunk, sadly keeping its dry and yellowed leaves in winter? This is a fluffy oak, a completely unique variety of oak.
Another characteristic feature of the reserve is its rapid streams, real geological laboratories in the open air, in which numerous rocks of various origins "tell" stories about the origin of the land and the structure of the Peloritan Mountains. These turbulent streams, including the one that gave its name to the Fiumdenisi Nature Reserve, often dry up during the hot summer months.
Among the valleys, it is worth highlighting the Eremiti Valley, once visited by believers who lived in several grottoes. Not far from it is the Church of the Holy Trinity. And the valley of Valle della Aqua Menta is notable for huge thickets of mint.
The main mountain of the reserve - Monte Scuderi - with a height of 1256 meters is located 19 km from the village of Fiumidinisi. One of the Capuchin monks from the village of Ali, Father Serafino, wrote that the mountain was originally called Monte Sparviero, since its top had lateral protrusions similar to the wings of a hawk (the word "sparviero" just means a hawk in Italian). Weather permitting, from the mountain you can see the outlines of Etna and the Cape of Capo Peloro in the east and the Aeolian Islands in the north.
The territory of Fiuminisi and Monte Scuderi belongs to the "chosen ones" because of the incredible variety of resources - deposits of minerals, vast forests, olive groves, thickets of mulberry trees and wheat fields. In the period between the rule of the Normans in Sicily and the Spanish conquests, these lands were the subject of disputes between the most powerful families of Messina and Taormina, and influential monastic orders laid claim to them.
The same father Serafino writes about a legend according to which an underground lake is located under the top of Monte Scuderi, and the treasures of robbers are hidden on its shores. They say that even Ahmed I, the ruler of the Ottoman Empire, who in 1612 sent a special group of people here, was looking for these treasures. Most of that group died as a result of the collapse of the vaults of the underground grotto. This is how the popular legend about the curse was born, which will overtake everyone who tries to find the treasure.
