The Asinara is one of the major islands of Sardinia. An unrivalled naturalistic treasure in the entire Mediterranean Sea, it has preserved the ecological habitat of over a century ago.
Vegetation cover consists mainly of hollies and Mediterranean shrub, and it preserves some typical plants unique to Sardinia, such as the ‘thorny knapweed’ (Centaurea horrida).
This is also an important area for the breeding of several wild animals, some of which quite rare: the Sardinian painted frog (Discoglossus sardus), the shag, the European mouflon, and the Asinello bianco (white donkey), which has given name to the island itself. There is only one road that connects both ends of the island. The only buildings present are the remnants of the Castellaccio (a mediaeval fortress belonged to the Doria family) and a high-security prison, which was closed down in 1997. The latter event fostered a significant improvement of the island through a re-qualification programme of the National Park of the Asinara, which, established in 1991, institutionalised the mission to conservation and proper management of the naturalistic heritage therein.
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