Comacchio

History

After its early occupation by the Etruscans and the Gauls, when the site lay on the main stream of the River Po, Comacchio was annexed by Rome. Under Emperor Augustus, who ruled Rome from 27 BC to AD 14, a canal was dug to deepen its lagoon. Part of the original wetlands were drained and divided among villae rusticae. Comacchio enjoyed prosperity under the Goths and the Lombards, and became the seat of a Lombard duchy. It owed its fortunes to its salt pans and its strategic importance to its location: when the Lombard king Authari expanded the Lombard dominion at the expense of Byzantium, he took the fortress of Comacchio and cut off communication between Padua and Ravenna. When the Franks descended into northern Italy in 756, their king, Pepin the Short, included Comacchio in his famous donation of land to Pope Stephen II, a grant later confirmed by Pepin's son and successor, Charlemagne. In 854 Comacchio was sacked by their rivals in the salt trade, the Venetians, The Holy See later acquired the city and presented it to the archbishopric of Ravenna. In 1299, Emperor Rudolph I conferred it on Obizzo IV d'Este of Ferrara. Since then, most of the swamp land has disappeared, leaving ground for the expansion of agriculture, and creating new zones for dwellings. The area was the scene of fierce fighting during Operation Roast, which occurred in the last months of the World War II. Comacchio was formerly the seat of a bishopric and retains its cathedral, now a co-cathedral in the Archdiocese of Ferrara-Comacchio. The town was once home to a factory for sugar refining, which closed in 1988. Comacchio and its seafront Lidi are a centre for tourism. The town is noted in Italy for its practice of eel-fishing in the nearby wetlands, and many dishes served in Comacchio…

Geography

Comacchio is situated in a lagoon just north of the present mouth of the Reno. It is built on more than thirteen different islets, joined by bridges. The most important resources of these wetlands are the fish farming and the salt ponds. The seaport of Porto Garibaldi lies to the east. The wetlands south of the town, the Valli di Comacchio, are classified as a Site of Community Importance and a Special Protection Area in Italy. They are also rated internationally important by the Ramsar Convention for the conservation and sustainable use of wetlands.

Most-observed species

• Yellow-legged Gull

  Larus michahellis J.F.Naumann, 1840 · Aves
  1,439
• Black-headed Gull

  Chroicocephalus ridibundus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  1,335
• Gray/Purple Heron

  Ardea cinerea Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  1,303
• Little Egret/Western Reef-Heron

  Egretta garzetta (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  1,293
• Greater Flamingo

  Phoenicopterus roseus Pallas, 1811 · Aves
  1,216
• Great Cormorant/European Shag

  Phalacrocorax carbo (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,199
• Pygmy cormorant

  Microcarbo pygmaeus (Pallas, 1773) · Aves
  1,193
• Common Buzzard

  Buteo buteo (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,156

Most recent

• M 4.3 — 2026-01-13
  1 km NNW of Fornace Zarattini, Italy
• M 4.6 — 2026-01-13
  2 km N of Fornace Zarattini, Italy
• M 3.7 — 2024-02-17
  5 km SSE of Modigliana, Italy
• M 4.1 — 2023-10-28
  2 km SSW of Bagnolo di Po, Italy
• M 3.9 — 2023-10-25
  0 km S of Ficarolo, Italy
• M 5.1 — 2023-09-18
  7 km SE of Marradi, Italy