The Kraków-Częstochowa Upland, also known as the Polish Jurassic Highland or Polish Jura ( pl, Jura Krakowsko-Częstochowska), is part of the

Jurassic The Jurassic ( ) is a geologic period and stratigraphic system that spanned from the end of the Triassic Period million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period, approximately Mya. The Jurassic constitutes the middle period of ...

System of south–central

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

, stretching between the cities of

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

, Częstochowa and

Wieluń Wieluń ( la, Velun) is a town in south-central Poland with 21,624 inhabitants (2021). Situated in the Łódź Voivodeship (since 1999), it was previously in Sieradz Voivodeship (1975–1998). Wieluń has a long and rich history. In the past, ...

. The Polish Jura borders the Lesser Polish Upland to the north and east, the foothills of the

Western Carpathians The Western Carpathians are a mountain range and geomorphological province that forms the western part of the Carpathian Mountains. The mountain belt stretches from the Low Beskids range of the Eastern Carpathians along the border of Poland wit ...

to the south and Silesian Upland to the west. The Polish Jura consists of a hilly landscape with

limestone rocks, cliffs, valleys and vast

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

formations, featuring some 220 caves. The relief of the upland developed since the Paleogene, under climatic conditions changing considerably. Its main component is a

peneplain 390px, Sketch of a hypothetical peneplain formation after an orogeny. In geomorphology and geology, a peneplain is a low-relief plain formed by protracted erosion. This is the definition in the broadest of terms, albeit with frequency the usage ...

, crowned by monadnocks, rocky masses that resisted erosion, generated as hard rock on

Late Jurassic The Late Jurassic is the third epoch of the Jurassic Period, and it spans the geologic time from 163.5 ± 1.0 to 145.0 ± 0.8 million years ago (Ma), which is preserved in Upper Jurassic strata.Owen 1987. In European lithostratigraphy, the name ...

buildup surrounded by less resistant bedded limestone of the same age."Pattern of karst landscape of the Cracow Upland (South Poland)" by Witold Stefan Alexandrowicz and Zofia Alexandrowicz, Acta Carsologica, Slovenian Academy Of Sciences The Polish Jura is visited by roughly 400,000 visitors a year. Part of it belongs to the Ojców National Park, the smallest of Poland's twenty national parks, ranking among the most attractive recreational areas of the country. Congress of the Jurassic System, Kraków, Poland.

Flora and fauna

The Kraków-Częstochowa Jurassic Upland consists of a rich

ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) consists of all the organisms and the physical environment with which they interact. These biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows. Energy enters the syste ...

, partly because of the unique

microclimate A microclimate (or micro-climate) is a local set of atmospheric conditions that differ from those in the surrounding areas, often with a slight difference but sometimes with a substantial one. The term may refer to areas as small as a few squ ...

and also because of the whole upland being surrounded by a natural forest. "Krakow - Czestochowa Upland"
Agencja Promocji Regionów ORANET. Plant and animal life is very diverse with over 1600 species of plants and 5500 species of animals. These include 4600 species of

insect Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body ( head, thorax and abdomen), three ...

s, including 1700 of

beetle Beetles are insects that form the order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Endopterygota. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 400,000 describ ...

s and 1075 of butterflies and 135 of

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweig ...

s. Mammals include the beaver,

badger Badgers are short-legged omnivores in the family Mustelidae (which also includes the otters, wolverines, martens, minks, polecats, weasels, and ferrets). Badgers are a polyphyletic rather than a natural taxonomic grouping, being united by ...

, ermine and 15 species of

bat Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera.''cheir'', "hand" and πτερόν''pteron'', "wing". With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most ...

s, many of which hibernate in the park's caves during the winter. The climate of the upland differs significantly from the surrounding area. The

snow Snow comprises individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water throughout ...

pack covers the area for 80 days a year and the rainy season lasts from April until September. Annual precipitation varies between 650–700 mm, higher than in surrounding regions, the median temperature is lower, from 0.5 to 1.0°C. Average temperature is 19°C in summer and -3°C in winter. There are a number of rivers that originate from the Kraków-Częstochowa Upland, among them the

Warta The river Warta ( , ; german: Warthe ; la, Varta) rises in central Poland and meanders greatly north-west to flow into the Oder, against the German border. About long, it is Poland's second-longest river within its borders after the Vistula, a ...

Biała Przemsza Biała Przemsza is a river of Poland, a tributary of the Przemsza near Mysłowice Mysłowice ( szl, Myslowicy; german: Myslowitz) is a city in Silesia in southern Poland, near Katowice. The population of the city is 74,085. It is located in ...

, Pilica, Dłubnia, Szreniawa, Prądnik, Wiercica and Rudawa. Apart from a diversity of plant and animal species, one can find a unique cultural landscape with archeological objects and relics of ancient inhabitation, with a vast collection of artifacts. The earliest settlement in the area dates to the Paleolithic period, approximately 12,000 years ago. The region is rich in

flint Flint, occasionally flintstone, is a sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as the variety of chert that occurs in chalk or marly limestone. Flint was widely used historically to make stone tools and sta ...

, which attracted

early humans ''Homo'' () is the genus that emerged in the (otherwise extinct) genus ''Australopithecus'' that encompasses the extant species ''Homo sapiens'' (modern humans), plus several extinct species classified as either ancestral to or closely relate ...

Gallery

File:Jaskinia Ciemna.jpg, Statues of

Neanderthal Neanderthals (, also ''Homo neanderthalensis'' and erroneously ''Homo sapiens neanderthalensis''), also written as Neandertals, are an extinct species or subspecies of archaic humans who lived in Eurasia until about 40,000 years ago. While the ...

in the Dark Cave File:Skała Grodzisko a1.jpg, Highland Outlier File:OPN Skała Rękawica.jpg, Crown Rocks File:Złoty Potok Staw Amerykan.jpg, American pond in Złoty Potok File:Bergaster.jpg, '' Aster amellus'' File:Sempervivum montanum.JPG, Mountain swarm (''Sempervivum montanum L.'') File:Saxifraga paniculata a5.jpg, '' Saxifraga paniculata'' File:Wielbłąd DK14 (2).jpg, Camel Rock on Zborów Mountain File:Skały Rzędkowickie Dk14.jpg, Rzędkowickie rocks File:Góra Zborów DK11 (16).jpg, Zborów mountain nature reserve File:Skały Mirowskie DK12 (11).jpg, Mirowskie rocks File:Dolina Kluczwody a7.jpg, Kluczwody Valley File:Dolina Mnikowska a8.jpg, Mnikowska Valley File:Brama Krakowska, Dolina Prądnika.jpg, Kraków Gate File:Dolina Prądnika OPN7 (3).jpg, Canyon of Prądnik File:Eagles Nests Trail 03.jpg, Club of Hercules File:Maczuga Herkulesa from Castle.JPG, Club of Hercules File:Maczuga Herkulesa 1.jpg, Club of Hercules File:Polska Olsztyn(śląskie) 006.jpg, Typical landscape File:Tatry-ze-skalki-502.jpg, View of the

Tatra mountains The Tatra Mountains (), Tatras, or Tatra (''Tatry'' either in Slovak () or in Polish () - '' plurale tantum''), are a series of mountains within the Western Carpathians that form a natural border between Slovakia and Poland. They are the hi ...

, 115 km away from the ruins of Grodzisko castle near Gmina Skała File:Jaskinia Wierzchowska Górna a2.jpg, Wierzchowska Górna Cave File:Dolina Prądnika a3.jpg, Prądnik river valley File:Gory Towarne Kusieta.JPG, Mount Towarne File:Bolechowicki Gully Nature reserve, Bolechowicka Gate, Karniowice village, Kraków County, Lesser Poland Voivodeship, Poland.jpg, Bolechowicka Gate File:Sokolica a1 (Dolina Będkowska).jpg, Sokolica File:Skały Rzędkowickie Turnia Lechfora 29.05.2010 p.jpg, Rzędkowickie rocks File:OkiennikWielki2.JPG, The Great Window File:Biaklo Olsztyn.JPG ;Castles File:Zamek-Ogrodzieniec.jpg, Ruins of the

Ogrodzieniec Castle Ogrodzieniec Castle is a ruined medieval castle in Podzamcze, near Ogrodzieniec, the south-central region of Poland called Polish Jura. Originating in the 14th century the castle was rebuilt several times in its long history. It is situated o ...

in Podzamcze File:Ogrodzieniec zamek 2.jpg, Ruins of the

File:Ogrodzieniec-Zamek-Tamerlan.jpg, Ruins of the castle Ogrodzieniec File:Zamek w Olsztynie DK12 (2).jpg, Ruins of

Olsztyn Castle The Olsztyn Castle, officially the Castle of Warmian Cathedral Chapter in Olsztyn ( pl, Zamek Kapituły Warmińskiej w Olsztynie), is a Brick Gothic castle located in the heart of Olsztyn (Allenstein), in northern Poland. Built in the 14th centu ...

File:Castle in Olsztyn.JPG, Ruins of the castle Olsztyn File:Zamek w Mirowie DK12.jpg, Ruins of Mirów Castle File:Mirów zamek 29.05.2010 p4.jpg, Ruins of the Mirów castle File:Zamek w Smoleniu DK11. (2).jpg, Ruins of Smoleniu Castle File:Polska Olsztyn(śląskie) 001.jpg, Ruins of Gmina Olsztyn File:Teczyn2.JPG, Tenczyn Castle File:Pieskowa Skała 1.jpg, Renaissance castle Pieskowa Skała File:Zamek Bobolice 2013.JPG, Bobolice Castle (after reconstruction in 2002–11) File:20140820 Zamek w Bydlinie 3686.jpg, Ruins of the castle Bydlin File:Zamek Lipowiec 8 maja 2010.jpg, Ruins of the castle Lipowiec File:Ruiny zamku Rabsztyn - przemasban71.JPG, The ruins of the castle Rabsztyn

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Krakow-Czestochowa Upland Mountain ranges of Poland Geography of Lesser Poland Voivodeship Lesser Poland Voivodeship

Flora and fauna

Gallery

See also

References

External links