the coast opposite to Elafonissi
Elafonissi is a small islet on the southwest of Crete. It is connected to the beach with a shallow reef (max. depth 1 meter) that allows crossing when the sea is calm.
There are only a couple of cantinas on the beach and plenty of places for camping.
The place can be accessed by car from the village of Vathi or by boat from Paleohora.
There are no permanent inhabitants.
History:
In 1824 850 women and children seeked refuge in the islet from the fury of the Turks. However the Turks managed to discover the passage from the mainland to the islet, walked over and slaughtered them all. According to the legend the sand on the beach took its red color from the blood of all the victims.
Natural Habitat :
Walking on the beach of Elafonissos the visitor can see various plants and bushes (Atriplex halmus, crithmum, maritimum, rura clepensis, ballota pseudodictamum etc.). There is also a small frog (bufo viridis viridis) endemic to the island and various lizards (podarcis erherdil elaphonisi) considered a protected species. There are also reported instances of a snake (coluber gemonensis gemorensis) . According to studies conducted by the Greek Ministry of the Environment the island serves as a breeding spot for the caretta-caretta sea turtle. Finally local fishermen have reported noticing Mediterranean seals ( monachus monachus) in the open sea.
There are very few indigenous species of birds on the area, but the area is very important to ornithologists since it is the last stop from Europe to Africa for migrating birds.
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