The Sanguinaires Islands

The Sanguinaires Islands are an archipelago of four rocky islands of magmatic origin composed of a dark rock, diorite and a lighter rock, a monzonitic granite. Colonies of seabirds nest there in complete tranquility; the yellow-legged gull, more rarely the Cory's shearwater, the laughing gull and the Audouin's gull. An original flora, composed of more than 150 species on Mezu Mare, the main island, some rare or even absent from the rest of Corsica among which the spectacular fly-eating arum.

The Sanguinaires Islands also have a rich past full of mysteries. Many travelers' accounts, including one of the most famous by Alphonse Daudet in "Letters from My Windmill", evoke traces of life on these wild islands. Human presence dates back to the 16th century with the construction of a Genoese tower on the site of the current lighthouse. In 1806, Mezu Mare became a health post with the construction of a lazaret, now in ruins, intended for coral fishermen returning from Africa. The semaphore was put into service in 1865 and disarmed in 1955. The lighthouse was automated in 1985. The archipelago was purchased by the General Council of Corsica in 1973.