The Rivers

The Po, known in past times as the Eridano, is Italy's longest river. It measures 652 km in length, has an average capacity of 1,500 m3 (as measured at the height of Ferrara), and a drainage basin measuring approximately 75,000 km2. The importance of the river makes it comparable to other great European rivers such as the Rhone, the Danube, the Rhine, and the Guadalquivir. One of the main characteristics of the Po is its delta, a landscape in constant transformation due to its typical lobed shape caused by the accumulation of sediments. This large river flows through a variety of different habitats. The final stretch is typical of water courses found in flat areas: the river is shallow, the water warm and slow-flowing; vegetation is abundant; the river bed is muddy and subject to a wide range of habitats. The main indigenous fish varieties found in these habitats are: carps, rudds, bleaks, eels, roaches, nases, common barbels, and royal perches.

There are over 1,000 Rivers and Streams in Italy.Here you can find the regional map.

Italian rivers are comparatively short; the longest, the Po, is merely 400 miles (645 km) long. A detailed list of the italian rivers.Web site in italian.

The Arno is a river in the Tuscany region of Italy. It is the most important river of central Italy after the Tiber. The river originates on Mount Falterona in the Casentino area of the Apennines, and takes initially a southward curve. The river turns to the west near Arezzo passing through Florence, Empoli and Pisa, flowing into the Ligurian Sea at Marina di Pisa. With a length of 241 kilometers, it is the largest river in the region. Its main tributaries are: the Sieve (60 kilometers), Bisenzio (49 kilometers), Ombrone, Era, Elsa, Pesa and Pescia.

The Adige is a river with its source in the Alpine region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol near the Italian border with Austria and Switzerland. At 410 km in length, 220 located in the province of Bolzano, it is the second longest river in Italy, after the Po River with 652 km.The river flows out of the artificial Alpine Lake Resia, located at the Resia Pass (1504 m) close to the borders with Austria and Switzerland above the Inn valley. The lake is known for the church tower that marks the site of the former village of Curon Antica (Alt Graun) that was abandoned and flooded in 1953 when the dam was finished. Near Glurns, the Rom River from the Swiss Val Müstair joins.