Belasitsa Nature Park () covers the northern slopes of Belasitsa Mountain in the Southwest Region of

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...

. The total area of the park is 117 km² (45 sq mi). Belasitsa is part of the European ecological network

NATURA 2000 Natura 2000 is a network of nature protection areas in the territory of the European Union. It is made up of Special Areas of Conservation and Special Protection Areas designated under the Habitats Directive and the Birds Directive, respectively ...

and is managed by the Belasitsa Nature Park Directorate which is a legal entity under the authority of the Executive Forest Agency of Ministry of Agriculture and Food. The Directorate office is located in the village of Kolarovo. The nature park is bordered to the west by

North Macedonia North Macedonia, ; sq, Maqedonia e Veriut, (Macedonia before February 2019), officially the Republic of North Macedonia,, is a country in Southeast Europe. It gained independence in 1991 as one of the successor states of Socialist Feder ...

and to the south by

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

, both of which contain regions of Belasitsa Mountain. Belasitsa Nature Park includes the villages of Gabrene, Skrut,

Klyuch Klyuch (, "key"; also transliterated ''Кључ, Ključ, Kliuch, Kljuch'', etc., Medieval Greek: Κλειδίον, ''Kleidion,'' Latin: Clidium) is a village in south-westernmost Bulgaria, part of Petrich Municipality, Blagoevgrad Province. It l ...

Yavornitsa Yavornitsa is a village in Petrich Municipality, in Blagoevgrad Province, Bulgaria. The Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch ...

, Kamena, Samuilovo, Kolarovo,

Belasitsa Belasica ( Macedonian and Bulgarian: , also translit. ''Belasitsa'' or ''Belasitza'', Ottoman Turkish: بلش Turkish: ''Beleş''), Belles ( el, Μπέλλες, ''Bélles'') or Kerkini (, ''Kerkíni'';), is a mountain range in the region of M ...

, and

Petrich Petrich ( bg, Петрич ) is a town in Blagoevgrad Province in southwestern Bulgaria, located in Sandanski–Petrich Valley at the foot of the Belasica Mountains in the Strumeshnitsa Valley. According to the 2021 census, the town has 26,778 ...

, all located in the municipality of

Blagoevgrad Province Blagoevgrad Province ( bg, област Благоевград, ''oblast Blagoevgrad'' or Благоевградска област, ''Blagoevgradska oblast''), also known as Pirin Macedonia or Bulgarian Macedonia ( bg, Пиринска Маке� ...

History

The initial process to conserve biodiversity in Belasitsa Mountain started in 1988 with the creation of the Kongur Reserve. It was declared by Order 671 of the Committee for Environmental Protection of 06.15.1988. The purpose of the order was to protect natural forest ecosystems of common chestnut and beech trees. At the base of the mountain lies Topilishte protected area, declared by Order 328 of 05.08.1992. The order was designed to protect Royal and Majestic Fern. Belasitsa was named to the Order RD-925 from 12.27.2007 of the Minister of Environment and Water in Bulgaria and is the newest nature park in the country.

Flora

Around 1500 plant species have been found in Belasitsa Nature Park, including Bulgarian and Balkan endemites, species protected by the Law on Biological Diversity, species included in the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora and species included in the Red Book of Bulgaria. Some of the plant species protected in the forest include common beech, common chestnut (largest deposit in the country), common yew, European holly, Heldreich's maple, Albanian lily, and Medicago carstiensis.

Fauna

The fauna in Belasitsa are affected by two main attributes of the mountain: location and altitude. Belasitsa Mountain is in the southwesternmost part of Bulgaria and is part of the Northend zone of the subtropical area. In Belasitsa's short history around 1500 species of invertebrates and approximately 180 species of vertebrates have been discovered in the mountain including Bulgarian and Balkan endemytes. Some of the protected animals are white-backed woodpecker, black woodpecker, Orpheus warbler, and small olive tree Warbler.

Resources

*The Nature Parks of Bulgaria Itineraries, State Forestry Agency, Bulgaria *Защитените Територии В Благоевград Област, Регионална Инспекция по Околната Среда И Водите Благоевград *Protected Territories in the Blagoevgrad District, Regional Inspectorate of Environment and Water, Blagoevgrad

External links

* http://www.belasitsa.net * http://www.belasitsa.com * https://web.archive.org/web/20140528172300/http://www.natura.org/ {{Protected areas of Bulgaria Geography of Blagoevgrad Province Nature parks in Bulgaria Tourist attractions in Blagoevgrad Province Protected areas established in 2007 2007 establishments in Bulgaria