Editing Sardinia (section)

=== Flora and fauna ===
{{See also|List of mammals of Sardinia|List of endemic plants of Sardinia}}
[[File:Giara-di-gesturi-wildpferde.jpg|thumb|Giara horses]]
[[File:Asinello bianco sardegna asinara 3593693026 750d1054eb o.jpg|thumb|Albino donkeys in Asinara]]
[[File:Felis Lybica Sarda 05.JPG|thumb|The Sardinian feral cat, long considered a subspecies of the [[African wildcat]], are descended from domesticated cats.<ref>Spartaco Gippoliti & Giovanni Amori, "Ancient introductions of mammals in the Mediterranean Basin and their implications for conservation", ''Mammal Review'' 36 (1) (January 2006): 37–48.</ref>]]

Due to Sardinia's continual isolation from mainland Europe even during glacial sea level lows (when it was connected to Corsica), Sardinia has a high level of [[endemism]], with regards to both flora<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Fois |first1=Mauro |last2=Farris |first2=Emmanuele |last3=Calvia |first3=Giacomo |last4=Campus |first4=Giuliano |last5=Fenu |first5=Giuseppe |last6=Porceddu |first6=Marco |last7=Bacchetta |first7=Gianluigi |date=2022-02-23 |title=The Endemic Vascular Flora of Sardinia: A Dynamic Checklist with an Overview of Biogeography and Conservation Status |journal=Plants |language=en |volume=11 |issue=5 |pages=601 |doi=10.3390/plants11050601 |issn=2223-7747 |pmc=8912449 |pmid=35270071 |doi-access=free }}</ref> and fauna, including insects<ref>{{Cite web |last=Francesco |title=Sardinian Insects |url=https://www.neperos.com/journal/Sardinian_Insects |access-date=2022-11-23 |website=Neperos |date=5 March 2017 |language=en}}</ref> and arachnids,<ref>Pantini P, Sassu A, Serra G (2013) Catalogue of the spiders (Arachnida Araneae) of Sardinia. Biodiversity J 4:3–104</ref> as well as terrestrial vertebrates, with endemic amphibians (including those also found on Corsica) including the [[Sardinian brook salamander]], [[brown cave salamander]], [[imperial cave salamander]], [[Monte Albo cave salamander]], [[Supramonte cave salamander]], [[Sarrabus' cave salamander]] and the [[Sardinian tree frog]] (also found in [[Corsica]]), with lizards endemic to the archipelago including [[Bedriaga's rock lizard]], the [[Tyrrhenian wall lizard]] and [[Fitzinger's algyroides]].

During the Late Pleistocene, Sardinia and Corsica had a highly endemic terrestrial mammal fauna, all of which is now extinct, which included a field mouse (''[[Rhagamys orthodon]]''), a vole (''[[Microtus henseli]]''), a shrew (''[[Asoriculus|Asoriculus similis]]''), a mole (''[[Talpa tyrrhenica]]''), a dwarf mammoth ([[Mammuthus lamarmorai|''Mammuthus'' ''lamarmorai'']]), the [[Sardinian pika]] (''Prolagus sardus''), a jackal-sized canine, the [[Sardinian dhole]] (''Cynotherium sardus''), a [[Mustelidae|mustelid]] (''[[Enhydrictis|Enhydrictis galictoides]]''), three species of otter (''[[Algarolutra majori]], [[Sardolutra|Sardolutra ichnusae]],'' and the gigantic ''[[Megalenhydris barbaricina]]'') and a deer (''[[Praemegaceros|Praemegaceros cazioti]]'').<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Palombo |first1=Maria Rita |last2=Rozzi |first2=Roberto |date=April 2014 |title=How correct is any chronological ordering of the Quaternary Sardinian mammalian assemblages? |url=https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S1040618213007702 |journal=Quaternary International |language=en |volume=328-329 |pages=136–155 |doi=10.1016/j.quaint.2013.09.046|bibcode=2014QuInt.328..136P |url-access=subscription }}</ref> Some of these animals were extinct by the beginning of the Holocene, with the deer species suggested to have persisted until around 7,600 years ago,<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Benzi |first1=Valerio |last2=Abbazzi |first2=Laura |last3=Bartolomei |first3=Paolo |last4=Esposito |first4=Massimo |last5=Fassò |first5=Cecilia |last6=Fonzo |first6=Ornella |last7=Giampieri |first7=Roberto |last8=Murgia |first8=Francesco |last9=Reyss |first9=Jean-Louis |date=May 2007 |title=Radiocarbon and U-series dating of the endemic deer Praemegaceros cazioti (Depéret) from "Grotta Juntu", Sardinia |journal=Journal of Archaeological Science |language=en |volume=34 |issue=5 |pages=790–794 |doi=10.1016/j.jas.2006.09.001|bibcode=2007JArSc..34..790B }}</ref> and the shrew into the Neolithic, while the Sardinian pika, vole and field mouse are suggested to have persisted until around 3000–2000 years ago.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Valenzuela |first1=Alejandro |last2=Torres-Roig |first2=Enric |last3=Zoboli |first3=Daniel |last4=Pillola |first4=Gian Luigi |last5=Alcover |first5=Josep Antoni |date=March 2022 |title=Asynchronous ecological upheavals on the Western Mediterranean islands: New insights on the extinction of their autochthonous small mammals |url=http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/09596836211060491 |journal=The Holocene |language=en |volume=32 |issue=3 |pages=137–146 |doi=10.1177/09596836211060491 |bibcode=2022Holoc..32..137V |s2cid=244763779 |issn=0959-6836|url-access=subscription }}</ref> The Sardinian pika in particular was historically abundant on the island, and was used by early inhabitants as a source of food.<ref>P.Y. Sondaar, A.A.E. van der Geer Mesolithic environment and animal exploitation on Cyprus and Sardinia/Corsica M. Mashkour, A. Choyke, M. Buitenhuis (Eds.), Proceedings of the IVth ASWA Symposium, IVA (2000), pp. 67–73 (Paris)</ref> On the {{present-day|island, its|[[fauna]]|1 January 2001}} includes a variety of introduced mammal species, such as the [[Corsican red deer]].

The island is inhabited by terrestrial tortoises and sea turtles like [[Hermann's tortoise]], the [[spur-thighed tortoise]], [[marginated tortoise]] (''Testudo marginata sarda''), Nabeul tortoise, [[loggerhead sea turtle]] and [[green sea turtle]].

Some [[birds of prey]] found here are the [[griffon vulture]], [[common buzzard]], [[golden eagle]], [[long-eared owl]], [[western marsh harrier]], [[peregrine falcon]], [[European honey buzzard]], Sardinian goshawk (''Accipiter gentilis arrigonii''), [[Bonelli's eagle]] and [[Eleonora's falcon]], whose name comes from [[Eleonor of Arborea]], national heroine of Sardinia, expert in [[falconry]].<ref>Cretan Beaches, [http://www.cretanbeaches.com/en/fauna-of-crete/birds-of-crete/960-eleonora-falcon-falco-eleonorae.html "Eleonora's falcon"], Retrieved 20 July 2012</ref>
The hundreds of lagoons and coastal lakes that dot the island are home for many species of wading birds, such as the [[greater flamingo]].

Conversely, Sardinia lacks many species common on the European continent, such as the [[Viperinae|viper]], [[wolf]], [[bear]] and [[marmot]].

The island has also long been used for grazing flocks of indigenous [[Sardinian sheep]]. The [[Sardinian Anglo-Arab]] is a horse breed that was established in Sardinia, where it has been selectively bred for more than one hundred years.

Three different breeds of dogs are peculiar to Sardinia: the [[Sardinian Shepherd Dog]], the [[Dogo Sardesco]] and the [[Levriero Sardo]].