The Apennine, part of the Alpine-Himalayan chain, is Italy's backbone mountain chain. The area of the Reserve was established by UNESCO on the 9th of June 2015 and it is a significant part of the northern Apennine. Although it represents a typical condition of the mountain and Apennine territory, it is however characterized by a unique feature: it is a focal point of the euro-mediterranean climate border.
This feature has determined, together with the geological heritage and other factors, the formation of a complex ecological and cultural mosaic, which is the basis of the landscape's evolution itself.