Pantelleria (Pantiddarìa in Sicilian) is an Italian municipality of 7,601 inhabitants[3] in the province of Trapani in Sicily.
The municipality covers the entire island of Pantelleria, which is located 110 km south of Sicily and 70 km from Africa, whose coast, like that of Sicily, is sometimes visible to the naked eye.[4] Its territory is of volcanic origin. The last eruption occurred in 1891 on the northwestern slope, in the submerged part. Many secondary volcanism phenomena are still present, mainly hot waters and steam vents.
The island reaches an altitude of 836 m above sea level with Montagna Grande.
The island's port provides regular connections with the ports of Trapani and Mazara del Vallo. Pantelleria has an airport and is connected to mainland Italy by scheduled flights.
Known for its central position in the Mediterranean Sea, a stopover between Africa and Sicily and a key trading post with the Levant, Pantelleria is characterized by its unique landscape, where natural elements (lava flows, coves, and sea stacks) are complemented by man-made structures: dry stone walls, with the fourfold function of clearing the seabed of stones, containing the soil, marking out land ownership, and protecting from the wind; Pantelleria gardens, almost always cylindrical buildings constructed from dry lava stone, with the dual function of protecting citrus fruits from the wind and controlling microclimatic effects to ensure adequate water supply to the plants, where the island is naturally deprived; and dammusi, rural buildings with thick dry stone walls, cubical shapes, white domed roofs, and round-arched openings, ancestral examples of bioclimatic architecture.
The island's native flora consists of Mediterranean scrub, particularly lush in the southeastern regions. The dominant elements in this landscape are broom, strawberry trees, maritime pines, and aromatic plants typical of the garrigue (thyme, rosemary, lavender, oregano, and mint). Pine forests grow on the highest peaks, replaced at lower altitudes by oaks (locally called balluti). The scarcity of water other than rainwater has made the development of irrigated agriculture impossible. A variety of caper grows wild, and today it is also one of the island's main crops, along with vines and olive trees (the Biancolilla variety), the latter grown low and branching widely to protect it from the wind. Citrus fruits are rare, but are cultivated with particular care and protected from the wind. Numerous varieties of palms have also been introduced by man, including the "dwarf" variety, which on other Mediterranean islands, including Sicily, is strangely absent.
Pantelleria is a transit point for the migration of many avian species between Europe and Africa. Among the resident birds are several species of raptors, including the peregrine falcon, the barn owl, the buzzard, and the Cory's shearwater. The Mediterranean monk seal, once thought extinct but perhaps still extant, is also a notable species. Other mammals, all small, include voles and, especially, rabbits, introduced by humans. Having no natural enemies, these animals reproduce uncontrollably. Many other species were introduced by humans and then rewilded: the Sardinian snake, the only snake species present on the island; the goat, which populated the landscape in the Middle Ages but is now extinct; and the wildcat, which lives in small colonies in the woods of the southeastern region. Among the larger mammals, in addition to a few bovids and sheep raised in stables for dairy production, Pantelleria's fauna includes a native equid subspecies, the Pantellerian donkey. Although extinct, thanks to an initiative by the Sicilian Region, a project to reintroduce the pure Pantellerian breed was developed, resulting in a few specimens reappearing in the wild since 2003. The presence of this donkey has been known since ancient times. Widespread until the mid-20th century and very strong, the Pantellerian donkey was selected by the Italian Army during the Great War to produce military mules.
(source: Wikipedia)