Biodiversity and ecology

In terms of biodiversity, i.e. the richness and variety of plant and animal species, the Tiber has a particularly rich ecosystem. A sort of aquatic infrastructure which links the urban environmental complex - consisting of twenty-one protected natural areas, numerous villas and historic parks - with the farmlands and green reserves that extend around the capital.

As is well explained in Bruno Cignini's book, one of the best in-depth studies on the subject, the Tiber is a veritable ecological corridor ensuring the conservation and transit of many species of plants and animals whose survival is linked to the river and its specific habitat.

Suffice it to mention the more than 60 bird species, mostly migratory, at home in the river environment and the more than 600 different types of plants recorded in the Tiber area.

Over the centuries, many events have taken place in and around the river. From the Middle Ages to the Unification of Italy, there have been many floods, some particularly serious, as is recalled by the plaques that mark the level reached by the river on the walls of churches and buildings in many old-town centres.

In December 1870, the Tiber rose 17 metres above its average level and the waters invaded a large part of the city centre, causing extensive damage. After this episode it was decided to proceed with the construction of protective barriers, high masonry embankments immediately called 'Muraglioni’.