Štirovača is an

Old-growth forest An old-growth forestalso termed primary forest, virgin forest, late seral forest, primeval forest, or first-growth forestis a forest that has attained great age without significant disturbance, and thereby exhibits unique ecological featur ...

in North Velebit. It is a nature reserve with abundant forest vegetation which covers the area of 118.5 acres. Majority of the forest extends to an altitude above 1100 meters above sea level and is composed mostly of

beech Beech (''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia, and North America. Recent classifications recognize 10 to 13 species in two distinct subgenera, ''Engleriana'' and ''Fagus''. The ''Engle ...

spruce A spruce is a tree of the genus ''Picea'' (), a genus of about 35 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal (taiga) regions of the Earth. ''Picea'' is the sole genus in the subfami ...

and

rowan The rowans ( or ) or mountain-ashes are shrubs or trees in the genus ''Sorbus ''Sorbus'' is a genus of over 100 species of trees and shrubs in the rose family, Rosaceae. Species of ''Sorbus'' (''s.l.'') are commonly known as whitebeam, r ...

. The area was once more densely covered with forest, but today a small part of the towering forests remain in Štirovača. This type of the spruce forest (''Aremonio-Piceetum'') is a relict boreal vegetation that existed in the ice ages, and which stretched far further to south than today's southern border. The land favors podzol soil, high elevation which is required for this type of trees in these latitudes (900 – 1100 m, and Štirovača is at 1100 m) and a relief position, so these forests occur in sinkholes, bays and gorges of Croatian highlands. This is because unique microclimate conditions are present, most notably the cold air is accumulated and frost areas prevail throughout the year because of the appearance of temperature inversions, and thus the conditions are created for spruce to become more competitive when compared to other tree species.

History

It was the first national park in Croatia. That status was gained in 1928 in Paklenica. Legal protection was mentioned in the financial laws in 1929, when the Plitvice Lakes had also gained the same status. The current status was acquired on April 26, 1965.

Sources

* http://www.sumari.hr/sumlist/gootxt.asp?id=200313&s=107 Forest list * http://www.velebit.hr/lokacije.php * http://www.avia.croadria.com/nov/velebit.htm * http://www.np-sjeverni-velebit.hr {{DEFAULTSORT:Stirovaca Lika-Senj County National parks of Croatia Forests of Croatia Geography of Lika-Senj County