The Altmühl Valley Nature Park () is a
nature park
A nature park, or sometimes natural park, is a designation for a protected area by means of long-term land planning, sustainable resource management and limitation of agricultural and real estate developments. These valuable landscapes are pres ...
, 2,962 km²
in area, in the south German state of
Bavaria
Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...
. The area of the park is almost coextensive with that of the
natural region
A natural region (landscape unit) is a basic geographic unit. Usually, it is a region which is distinguished by its common natural features of geography, geology, and climate.
From the ecological point of view, the naturally occurring flora and ...
major unit of the Southern
Franconian Jura
The Franconian Jura ( , , or ) is an upland in Franconia, Bavaria, Germany. Located between two rivers, the Danube in the south and the Main in the north, its peaks reach elevations of up to and it has an area of some 7053.8 km2. Emil Mey ...
(''Südliche Frankenalb''). It lies immediately north of the city of
Ingolstadt
Ingolstadt (; Austro-Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian: ) is an Independent city#Germany, independent city on the Danube, in Upper Bavaria, with 142,308 inhabitants (as of 31 December 2023). Around half a million people live in the metropolitan ...
on the
River Danube and is divided into a southern and northern
Altmühl Valley.
Description
The nature park was established on 25 July 1969
in
Pappenheim by society formed for the purpose, the ''Naturpark Altmühltal (Südliche Frankenalb)'' ("Altmühl Valley Nature Park (Southern Franconian Jura)"). It is the fourth largest nature park in Germany after the
Central/North Black Forest Nature Park,
Bergstraße-Odenwald Nature Park and
Southern Black Forest Nature Park
The Southern Black Forest Nature Park () is located in Baden-Württemberg in Germany and covers an area of . As of 2018, it is Germany's largest nature park.
History
The Southern Black Forest Nature Park was established on February 1, 1999. The ...
.
File:Arnsberger Leite 01.jpg, Arnsberger Leite
File:Altmühltal - Bavaria, Germany - 16 July 2015.jpg, Burgstein
File:2016 Zwölf Apostel 09.jpg, Zwölf Apostel
File:2013 Weltenburg 18.jpg, Weltenburger Enge
File:Weltenburger Enge (Nordufer).JPG, Danube
The Danube ( ; see also #Names and etymology, other names) is the List of rivers of Europe#Longest rivers, second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest sou ...
at Weltenburger Enge
File:Wasserzell vom Frauenberg (1).jpg, Villages and valleys
File:Arzberg 2-2.jpg, Arzberg
File:2016 Heinrichsgraben 10.jpg, Sinter terraces
File:Klausenhöhle.JPG, Cave-systems
File:Herbst im Harburger Karab (FFH-Gebiet) 02.jpg, Autumn in Harburger Karab forest
File:Galgenberg 05.jpg, Autumn at Galgenberg
File:Figurenfeld bei Eichstätt.jpg, Figurenfeld sculpture park
File:Naturpark_Altmuehltal.jpg, Nature park sign
See also
*
List of nature parks in Germany
Nature parks in Germany () have been established under section 22, paragraph 4 of that country's Federal Nature Conservation Act (BNatSchG). there were 103 nature parks, comprising about 27 percent of the total land area of Germany and are broug ...
References
[Area of the nature park:]
– 2962 km²
''Liste der Naturparke''
(Association of German Nature Parks), retrieved 20 August 2014, at naturparke.de
according to other sources:
– 2967 km²
''Der Naturpark Altmühltal''
retrieved 12 October 2016, at naturpark-altmuehltal.de (pdf; 67.16 KB)
[Naturpark Altmühltal](_blank)
retrieved 24 April 2014, at openstreetmap.org
[''Der Naturpark Altmühltal''](_blank)
retrieved 12 October 2016, at naturpark-altmuehltal.de (pdf; 67.16 KB)
Literature
* ''Das Tal der Uraltmühl'', 144 Seiten, Tümmels, Nuremberg,
* ''Das Urdonautal der Altmühl'', 132 Seiten, Tümmels, Nuremberg,
External links
Altmühl Valley Nature Park at naturpark-altmuehltal.de
{{Authority control
Nature parks in Bavaria
Eichstätt (district)
Kelheim (district)
Weißenburg-Gunzenhausen
Franconia