Saline di Margherita di Savoia, State nature reserve near Gulf of Manfredonia, Italy

The Saline di Margherita di Savoia are salt ponds along the Adriatic coast where seawater evaporates in shallow basins to produce salt. The basins are arranged in an interconnected network of channels and collection areas spanning several kilometers.

Salt extraction in this area began in ancient times and was expanded systematically during the early modern period. The site received its current name in 1879 as a tribute to Italian Queen Margherita.

The Museo storico delle Saline occupies an old salt warehouse beside the sixteenth-century Torre delle Saline. Its displays trace the salt workers' trade, and the reserve also hosts the LIPU-managed Osservatorio naturalistico "Salpi" for birdwatching. The site has been a Ramsar wetland since 1979.

The reserve lies south of the Gulf of Manfredonia, with the Salpi nature observatory managed by LIPU and the Historical Museum of the Salt Pans in an old warehouse beside the 16th-century Torre delle Saline. Access is on foot or by bike along the raised earthen banks between the basins; the open, flat terrain offers almost no shade, so bring sun protection and water.

The shallow salty waters attract thousands of pink flamingos each year that breed and raise their young here. This population ranks among the largest in Europe and makes the site a breeding ground of international importance.