In 1806 the island became the base of operations of the English fleet under Admiral Sidney Smith, who tried to oppose the penetration of Napoleon's army in Calabria.

On 25 December 1917, off the coast of the island, the submarine UB-49 commanded by Hans von Mellenthin of the Austro-Hungarian Navy sank the British steamer Umballa carrying barley.

The ship, launched in 1898 and owned by the British India Steam Navigation Company Ltd, had sailed from Karachi, had stopped in Syracuse, and was heading for Naples.

[1][4] Vegetation is Mediterranean, with some rare plants in the inaccessible cliffs to the north and northwest such as the Mediterranean dwarf palm (Chamaerops humilis), the rock carnation (Dianthus rupicola), and the endemic palinuro primula (Primula palinuri) found in colonies on limestone facing north and northeast.

On Dino, groups of primula are seen that have abandoned their normal cave habitats and have pushed between the herbaceous vegetation, even finding niches under oak trees.

Individuals and small groups of the plant are also seen on the beach and clinging to the rock faces of cliffs on the mainland opposite the island.