Maps and multimedia tool for the popularization and promotion of protected areas of the Apennines of Modena (Northern Italy)

Are here illustrated the Tourist-Environmental Maps and a CD-Rom implemented in the last years for thepopularization and promotion of protected areas located in hilly and mountain sectors of the Modena Apennines.The hilly area is the Natural Reserve of Salse di Nirano; the \u201cSalse\u201d are small mud volcanoes formed by emissions ofsalt water mixed with mud and pushed up by methane rising to the surface along faults. The mountain sectorsconsist of the upper Tagliole Valley and Mt. Cimone area, located within the Frignano Park; they are mainlycharacterized by glacial, cryogenic and gravitational landforms.In a first step, Geomorphological maps and Digital Terrain Models (DTM) have been produced. After that,Geotourist maps, which combine the most evident geomorphological features with fundamental tourist informationwere derived from the geomorphological maps. The Geotourist maps and the DTM are the cartographic documentscharacterizing the Tourist-Environmental maps which are pocket foldable maps printed on both sides. In addition,the Tourist-Environmental maps contain a description of the geological, geomorphological, botanical and zoologicalaspects, accompanied by photographs and information on excursion trails, visitor centers, refugees and othertourist information.The CD-Rom of the Natural Reserve of Salse di Nirano consists in a digital multimedia gallery, that can be browsedlike a web page. It contains the description of the scientific and tourist aspects and a part that groups soundrecordings, movies, photos plus a virtual flight. The CD-Rom contains several thematic maps which can be downloadedas PDF files. It has been also utilized to implement the new web site of the Natural Reserve: http://www.fiorano.it/Turismo/Salse%20Nirano/in/index.ht