Cansiglio

Cansiglio (Canséi or Canséjo in Venetian language) is a plateau in the northern-Italian Prealps, included in the provinces of Belluno, Treviso and Pordenone. Cansiglio is home to a very small Language island of Cimbrian.

The plateau rises immediately above the plain below, at more than 1,000 m (3,300 ft) above the sea level. It is in fact formed by a basin surrounded by rocky peaks, such as Monte Costa, the Cima Valsotta, Monte Millifret, Pizzoc and the Monte Cavallo; these mountains separate the Cansiglio from the short Val Lapisina valley and from Piancavallo.

The plateau features several examples of Karst topography, including several sinkholes and ponors. The main ones are the Bus de la Lum, Bus della Genziana and Abisso del Col della Rizza, with a deepness of, respectively, -180, -585 and -794 meters.

Most of the territory of Cansiglio is covered by woods, mostly composed by local beeches, although there are also non-autochthonous coniferous trees such as the European spruce. Due to the climatic characteristics of the plateau, the vegetation follows an inverted distribution than usual: species typical of colder environments occupy the lower altitudes, and those typical of milder ones are at higher altitudes. Anemones grow in large number under the beeches in summer. Large open spaces are used as pastures for sheep and bovines.

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