The Grădiștea Muncelului-Cioclovina Natural Park () is a

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural or cultural values. Protected areas are those areas in which human presence or the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. firewood ...

( natural park category V

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...

) situated in

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

, in

Hunedoara County Hunedoara County () is a county (''județ'') of Romania, in Transylvania, with its capital city at Deva, Romania, Deva. The county is part of the Danube–Criș–Mureș–Tisa Euroregion. Name In Hungarian language, Hungarian, it is known as , ...

Location

The Natural Park is located in the Șureanu Mountains (

Southern Carpathians The Southern Carpathians (also known as the Transylvanian Alps; ; ) are a group of mountain ranges located in southern Romania. They cover the part of the Carpathian Mountains located between the Prahova River in the east and the Timiș and ...

), in the central-southern part of Hunedoara County, in the administrative territory of the communes

Baru ''Baru'', sometimes referred to as the cleaver-headed crocodile, is an extinct genus of Australian mekosuchine crocodilian. Its fossils have been found from various Late Oligocene and Miocene localities from across the Northern Territory and Que ...

Boșorod Boșorod (, ) is a commune in Hunedoara County, Transylvania, Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary ...

Bănița Bănița (, ) is a Commune in Romania, commune in Hunedoara County, Transylvania, Romania. It is composed of three villages: Bănița, Crivadia (''Krivádia''), and Merișor (''Merisor''). The Grădiștea Muncelului-Cioclovina Natural Park is pa ...

Orăștioara de Sus Orăștioara de Sus (, ) is a commune in Hunedoara County, Transylvania, Romania. It is composed of eight villages: Bucium (''Bucsum''), Costești (''Kosztesd''), Costești-Deal, Grădiștea de Munte (''Gredistye''), Ludeștii de Jos (''Ludesd''), ...

, and Pui.

Description

Grădiștea Muncelului-Cioclovina Natural Park has an area of , and was declared a natural protected area by the ''Law Number 5'' on March 6, 2000 (published in ''Romanian Official Paper Number 152 on April 12, 2000'') and represents a mountainous area which includes forests, mountain peaks, pastures, meadows, valleys,

karst Karst () is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble carbonate rocks such as limestone and Dolomite (rock), dolomite. It is characterized by features like poljes above and drainage systems with sinkholes and caves underground. Ther ...

areas,

cave Caves or caverns are natural voids under the Earth's Planetary surface, surface. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. Exogene caves are smaller openings that extend a relatively short distance undergrou ...

s, and

canyon A canyon (; archaic British English spelling: ''cañon''), gorge or chasm, is a deep cleft between escarpments or cliffs resulting from weathering and the erosive activity of a river over geologic time scales. Rivers have a natural tendency t ...

s that shelters a variety of flora and fauna. Protected areas included in the park: ''Ponorâci-Cioclovina Karstic Complex'' (1.50 ha), ''Tecuri Cave'' (2 ha), ''Șura Mare Cave'' (5 ha), ''Bolii Cave'' (0.50 ha), ''Crivadia Canyon'' (10 ha), and ''Fossil Reserve Ohaba-Ponor'' (10 ha).

References

Protected areas of Romania Geography of Hunedoara County Protected areas established in 2000 Tourist attractions in Hunedoara County {{Europe-protected-area-stub