Sisco (stream)

The Sisco is 6.51 kilometres (4.05 mi) long and flows through the commune of Sisco, Haute-Corse.[1] It rises at an altitude of 660 metres (2,170 ft) on the side of the Guado a l'Alzi.[2] Its source is to the east of the 1,236 metres (4,055 ft) Rocher de Pruberzulu and south of Pietracorbara. The stream flows east-southeast to the sea, where its mouth is in the town of Sisco.[3] It enters the sea at the Sisco marina, to the north of the pebble beach.[2] Woods along the Sisco are mainly composed of holm oak, cork oak, chestnut, olive, beech and alder.[2] The D32 road parallels the stream for most of its course.[3]

The stream is called U Fiume di Siscu in the Corsican language.[2]

Mouth of the Sisco

The Sisco valley lies between the mountains that form the spine of the Cap Corse peninsula and the sea, and is enclosed between two ridges.[2] The watershed covers 19.8 square kilometres (7.6 sq mi), with a maximum elevation of 1,307 metres (4,288 ft). The watershed is bowl-shaped, with several streams converging to form the stream above the Moine location.[4] Flows of water are carried rapidly downstream. As a result, the Sisco sometimes has severe floods.[4] In 1851 a flood rose to 2 metres (6 ft 7 in) above the stream bed. The village bridge was destroyed by a flood in 1907 and in 1938. Further floods occurred in 1993, 1994 and 1999.[5]

In August 2021 the mayor of Sisco banned swimming and fishing in the river due to a report that a visitor may have become infected by bilharzia, carried by the parasite Schistosoma haematobium, while swimming. The disease is very rare in Europe, but had occurred in Corsica in 2014.[6]

The following streams (ruisseaux) are tributaries of the Sisco (ordered by length):[1]

• Porcili 3 km (1.9 mi)
  • Cipriaca 3 km (1.9 mi)
• Eghiglione 2 km (1.2 mi)
• Botru 2 km (1.2 mi)
• Pietratenna 1 km (0.62 mi)
• Guadillu di Lapidanu 1 km (0.62 mi)
• Castagni 1 km (0.62 mi)
• Canavaggia 1 km (0.62 mi)