The most peculiar habitat of the Park is the wetland, which is
mainly represented by the marshes located in the Natural Reserve
Area of Lame di Fuori (see Fig. 2). This large wetland covers
approximately 655 ha and it is of fundamental importance as an
over-wintering and stop-over site for avifauna. The complex of
retrodunal pools of the reserve is directly related to the winds and
sea currents which started the formation of the dune system. Under
favourable conditions, when dunes begin to form, a consolidated
sandbank builds up in front of the dunes. The new, growing beach
tends to join the pre-existing shore and causes a sheet of water to
accumulate between the new dune and the old coastline. Finally,
further sediments are deposited closing any connections with the
sea and a proper retrodunal lagoon is formed. Over the centuries,
these basins, initially lagoons, then retrodunal and coastal pools,
gradually turned into depressions adjacent to the dunes, as depicted
in Fig. 3, becoming a suitable habitat for the development of
mesohygrophilous forests.