Welcome by the MISC!

Hello!

this blog should have been created many years ago, when we started to spend time on small Italian islands to look for rare migrant birds and vagrants (and sun, food, friends, peaceful places and so on… ; ).

But we are a bit lazy, so here we are.

What is this site about?

Although we are enthusiastic about birding just about anywhere we happen to be, this site is dedicated to the places we love most, small islands, and especially to our favourite place of all: the island of Linosa.

About Linosa

Linosa is a small volcanic island (5.43 km²) halfway between Sicily and Tunisia (see map on the right). It has about 440 year-round residents, most of whom live in the island’s only village: with only a few, friendly people and tons of birds, Linosa is as relaxing a birding destination as there is.

Due to its position in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, Linosa is a magnet for thousands of migratory birds, and it has rapidly established a reputation as the best place to find rarities in Italy.

Linosa also hosts an endemic lizard (Podarcis filfolensis laurentiimuelleri) and one of the world’s largest colonies of Scopoli’s Shearwater (Calonectris diomedea diomedea).

Linosa

Linosa - Pozzolana

Scopoli's Shearwater

Podarcis filfolensis

Window

   About Lampedusa

Lampedusa is the biggest of the three islands (with Linosa and Lampione) that comprise the Pelagie Islands.

Lampedusa is quite different from Linosa: it is a flatter, limestone island that is four times as big and ten times more populous than Linosa.

In order to get to Linosa, we fly to Lampedusa and wait for the first available ferry. Although there are scheduled ferry or hydrofoil departures every day, the vagaries of weather mean that we are often stranded on Lampedusa for one or more days.

Lampedusa is also a fantastic birdwatching destination (there is also a bit colony of Eleonora's Falcon), but it lacks the relaxing atmosphere that makes Linosa so magical! 

Lampedusa sunset

Lampedusa

Eleonora's Falcon yuv

What will you find in these pages?

An account of all our visits to Linosa and Lampedusa up to 2010, illustrated with many of our photographs.

Once we’re done entering our past records, we will try to keep the blog up to date with our new spring and autumn sightings.

What is the MISC?

MISC is an acronym for Malati di Isolitudine allo Stato Cronico. This play on words is hard to translate from Italian, but it basically references our addiction to the unparalleled sense of solitude and peace that one can only find on small, remote islands.

We are a group of friends, fanatical birders all, who spend some time every spring and fall on Linosa looking for migrants and vagrants. Our names are (alphabetically): Andrea Corso, Ottavio Janni, Hans Larsson, Igor Maiorano, Lucio Maniscalco and Michele Viganò.

Are you planning to visit Linosa?

We are always happy when someone new joins our team! You can contact us via e-mail: Andrea: voloerrante@yahoo.it ,  Ottavio: coeligena@hotmail.com , Igor: igormaio@infinito.it or Michele: mikivigano@yahoo.com

Part of the MISC (Andrea Corso, Michele Viganò, Ottavio Janni, Igor Maiorano)