In the southern Cilento, in the hinterland of the Gulf of Policastro, there is a site of high environmental value which is identified with the drainage of basin of the Bussento River.
What makes it special and unique is the fact that an emerged part corresponds to an underground one. It is a particularity which is the consequence of a karst phenomenon precisely linked to the presence of the river, which flows party underground, before re-emerging in the territory of the Municipality of Morigerati and continuing its course. It is a splendid route, the one that winds from the historic center of Morigerati, passing through a canyon carved by the river and crossed by two wooden bridges, and then reaching a gorge with spectacular waterfalls and rapids. Up to the cave opening at the point where the river re-emerges from the earth.
Due to its characteristics, the whole area inside the National Park of Cilento, Vallo di Diano and Alburni is a WWF oasis, where the most important project for the protection of biodiversity in Italy is being carried out. And the plant and animal heritage of the area, including the caves, is extraordinary. The flora is everywhere rich of species and luxuriant: from the gorge of the river, with mosses, ferns, poplars and alders, to the northwest valley, where there is a holm oak, to the oak woods, ash and hornbeams. And in the most favorable points from the climatic point of view, the rich Mediterranean scrub also contributes to the variety of flora. The fauna is also remarkable: from the salamanders to the otters, both species at risk of extinction; from the wild cats and wolves to the raptors, with the rare short toed eagle eating reptiles; from the amphibious to the many birds species, including numerous rare raptors at risk of extinction. There is also the aquatic fauna. The river is populated by trouts, shrimps and crabs.
