Corsica

At the mercy of these geological upheavals and changing climatic conditions, the distance between Corsica and the continent has varied. 6 million years ago, the Mediterranean was an enclosed and partly drained sea and, for at least 1 million years, this made it possible to form a "dry" passage between Corsica and the Italian peninsula. 

Later, in the Quaternary period (between 2.6 and 1.5 million years ago), the ice ages caused the level of the Mediterranean to drop by about 150 m, which led to the formation of a land area between Corsica, Sardinia, the Tuscan islands and Italy. This event largely explains the origin of the island's fauna and flora and their similarities to the species found in Sardinia and the Tyrrhenian islands.

From a geological point of view, Corsica is divided into four large areas: 

• the 'crystalline zone', characterised by granites, which occupies the western part of Corsica, from Isula Rossa in the north to Sulinzara in the south, and forms the Tenda and Agriate mountains (these are rocks derived from the African plate); 
• the "metamorphic zone", characterised by schists, which extends from Cap Corse to the south of the Castagniccia and is also called "Corse alpine"; 
• the 'central depression', which extends from Ostriconi to Sulinzara via Corti;
• Sedimentary soils consisting of alluvial soils, which extend across the eastern plain (from Bastia to Ventiseri) and in some basins (San Fiurenzu, Aiacciu, Prupià, Bunifaziu).

The limestone rocks are limited to the regions of San Fiurenzu and Bunifaziu and a few sectors in the central part of the island.

Corsica has a Mediterranean climate and is largely covered by forests. At higher altitudes, sub-alpine forests with green alder (Alnus viridis), juniper (Juniperus communis var. saxatilis), sycamore maple (Acer pseudoplatanus) and groves of white birch (Betula pendula) predominate. 

Lower down, forests of silver fir (Abies alba) and beech (Fagus sylvatica) grow on the north-facing slopes, and Corsican pine (Pinus nigra subsp. laricio) forests on the south- facing slopes, followed by holm oak (Quercus ilex) and cork (Quercus suber) forests as they descend in altitude.

At medium altitudes, there are mixed deciduous forests with a predominance of downy oak (Quercus pubescens), oak (Quercus petraea), hop hornbeam (Ostrya carpinifolia) and Neapolitan alder (Alnus cordata). There are also extensive maritime pine forests (Pinus pinaster) and chestnut groves (Castanea sativa). 

The island's amphibian population is very interesting, including endemic species such as the Corsican discoglossus (Discoglossus montalentii), the Corsican salamander (Salamandra corsica) and the Corsican newt (Euproctus montanus). Among the reptiles, the Fitzinger's algiroid (Algyroides fitzingeri) and the Tyrrhenian lizard (Podarcis tiliguerta), both endemic to Sardinia and Corsica, are worthy of note. 

The inventory of birds in Corsica counts 135 breeding species, including six species of seabirds and 24 occasional birds. Three species disappeared as breeders in the 1960s: the white-tailed sea eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla), the russet humpback (Oxyura leucocephala) and the Yelkouan shearwater (Puffinus yelkouan). 

Almost a quarter of the species of non-marine birds that regularly nest in Corsica (23%) have distinctive morphological characteristics. The Corsican nuthatch (Sitta whiteheadi) is the only species which is strictly endemic to Corsica but 22 other taxa have morphological, chromatic or ecological features which differentiate them from their nominal forms. The characteristics of these birds are often shared with the same species found in Sardinia and, in part, also in the Tuscan archipelago and the Balearic Islands or even in some areas of the Italian peninsula, the Iberian peninsula and North Africa. 

As far as mammals are concerned, it is worth mentioning two species that can be found in the extensive forest cover: the mouflon (Ovis aries musimon) and the Sardinian deer (Cervus elaphus corsicanus), an endemic subspecies that has returned to Corsica thanks to the reintroduction of individuals from Sardinia since 1985. 

The LIFE MILVUS project will be developed in Corsica and, in particular, in the central- north-western part of the island, in the Regino Valley (Balagne region) and in the Ajaccio region. 

The Regino Valley runs between mountains over 1,000 metres high and then flows into the coast. It is located in the crystalline zone of the island and is dominated by 90% granite porphyry, interspersed with areas of Quaternary sediments, sedimentary rocks and metamorphic formations. A significant portion of the territory is occupied by pastures and olive groves.