The Irminio (; ; ) is a long river located in south-eastern

Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...

, southern

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

. It is the most important of the rivers of the

province of Ragusa The province of Ragusa (; ) was a province in the autonomous region of Sicily, Italy, located in the southeast of the island. Following the abolition of the Sicilian provinces, it was replaced in 2015 by the Free municipal consortium of Ragusa ...

. The river springs from Monte Lauro, the main peak of the Hyblaean Mountains, which form the main part of the mountainous southeast of Sicily and runs across the province from north-east to south-west before flowing into the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...

east of Marina di Ragusa. Its main affluences are the streams ''Cava Volpe'', ''Ciaramite'', ''Mastratto'', and near Ragusa Ibla the streams ''San Leonardo'' and ''Santa Domenica''.

Natural reserves

Halfway through its course the river is housing a small area classified as ''Oasi Irminio'' for the

brown trout The brown trout (''Salmo trutta'') is a species of salmonid ray-finned fish and the most widely distributed species of the genus ''Salmo'', endemic to most of Europe, West Asia and parts of North Africa, and has been widely introduced globally ...

and at its mouth the ''Natural reserve Macchia Foresta del fiume Irminio'' of .

Dam

The 10 November 1976 works started to build a

dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, aqua ...

along the river in the area between

Ragusa Ragusa may refer to: Places Croatia * Ragusa, Dalmatia, the historical name of the city of Dubrovnik * the Republic of Ragusa (or Republic of Dubrovnik), the maritime city-state of Ragusa * Ragusa Vecchia, historical Italian name of Cavtat, a t ...

and Giarratana. The structure, tall, was completed in 1983 to create the '' Lago di Santa Rosalia'', a reservoir for agricultural use but also used for

recreational fishing Recreational fishing, also called sport fishing or game fishing, is fishing for leisure, exercise or competition. It can be contrasted with commercial fishing, which is occupational fishing activities done for profit; or subsistence fishing, ...

References

European drainage basins of the Mediterranean Sea Rivers of Italy Rivers of Sicily Rivers of the Province of Ragusa {{Italy-river-stub