| 'Ciolo' Canal is a long and wide canal, of erosive origin, and is situated near Gagliano del Capo. The innermost tract of the canal is almost totally urbanized and forms a valley with cultivable fields and olive groves. The tract nearest to the coast is more interesting and is dominated by the bridge of the coast road. Stairs descend along the banks of the canal and end in a cemented open space. Then they start again towards the inland and reach 'Grotta delle Prazziche'. Paleolithic and neolithic handmade articles and prehistoric fauna were found inside this cave. The 120 metre-deep 'Grotta Grande', with a cavern 30 metres high and a vault 10 metres high, opens in the inlet. Prehistoric discoveries were also found here. The stream of the canal, dry for the most part of the year, is recognizable in a luxuriant vegetation of ditch reeds. On the rocky slopes we find a scrub vegetation including the arborescent euphorbia (Euphorbia dendroides), the Salentinian cornflower (Centuarea japigica) and the islands'garlic (Allium commutatum). |