Overview
Sometimes called the 'Gran Bosco della Mesola', it is a predominantly holm oak forest that extends to the edge of the Po Delta area in the province of Ferrara. This is a very special forest, as it is a rare remnant of the ancient woods that dotted the Po Valley in the Middle Ages and then gradually disappeared at the hands of man to make way for fields and pastures. Its uniqueness is also derived from the fact that a subspecies of red deer endemic to our country has survived here, a direct descendant of the ancient deer of the plains and totally disappeared elsewhere: smaller in size than the deer that inhabit European forests, it also has light spotting in adult animals, a further trait that distinguishes it from other subspecies. An interesting exhibition on the animal is set up on the first floor of the nearby Este Castle in Mesola. In 2023 the Mesola deer, also known as the Italic deer, left the reserve for the first time in centuries to be taken to Calabria (Serre regional park) as part of a project to reintroduce native fauna.
It is possible to visit the forest either on foot and independently, or by bicycle with guided tours and by boarding a comfortable little train. Above all, the guided tours, which go into a part of the reserve not otherwise accessible, allow the observation of deer and also fallow deer, introduced here in the 1950s-1960s.
