Before the Adige river was regulated under Maria Theresa of Austria in the 18th century, the South Tyrolean Bassa Atesina area was continually flooded: The wild Adige river kept bursting its banks until the area was drained and transformed into cultivable land. Out of that emerged the so-called “Old Adige” (Alte Etsch, in German - Vecchio Adige, in Italian), or “Etschloch”.

The Old Adige is today a protected pond that emerged out of a branch stream, located slightly outside the village centre of Magrè on the Wine Road. The biotope features a high inorganic mineral nutrient level, resulting in an intense growth of plants: Today you can only see one third of the pond, as the rest is covered by plants and reeds.

Many animal species have found here their habitat, you can observe amphibians as well as water birds. Dragonflies and water insects, birds including the common moorhen, the Eurasian reed warbler and the great reed warbler, as well as plants such as floating plant communities of European white water lily and watermilfoil live and grow here. A little natural paradise!

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