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

Jurassic The Jurassic ( ) is a Geological period, geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system that spanned from the end of the Triassic Period million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period, approximately 143.1 Mya. ...

System of south–central

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

, stretching between the cities of

Kraków , officially the Royal Capital City of Kraków, is the List of cities and towns in Poland, second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city has a population of 804,237 ...

Częstochowa Częstochowa ( , ) is a city in southern Poland on the Warta with 214,342 inhabitants, making it the thirteenth-largest city in Poland. It is situated in the Silesian Voivodeship. However, Częstochowa is historically part of Lesser Poland, not Si ...

and

Wieluń Wieluń () is a town in south-central Poland with 21,624 inhabitants (2021). The town is the seat of the Gmina Wieluń and Wieluń County, and is located within the Łódź Voivodeship. Wieluń is a capital of the historical Wieluń Land. W ...

. The Polish Jura borders the Lesser Polish Upland to the north and east, the foothills of the Western Carpathians 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 is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

formations, featuring some 220 caves. The relief of the upland developed since the

Paleogene The Paleogene Period ( ; also spelled Palaeogene or Palæogene) is a geologic period and system that spans 43 million years from the end of the Cretaceous Period Ma (million years ago) to the beginning of the Neogene Period Ma. It is the fir ...

, under climatic conditions changing considerably. Its main component is a peneplain, crowned by

monadnock An inselberg or monadnock ( ) is an isolated rock hill, knob, ridge, or small mountain that rises abruptly from a gently sloping or virtually level surrounding plain. In Southern Africa, a similar formation of granite is known as a koppie, an ...

s, rocky masses that resisted erosion, generated as hard rock on

Late Jurassic The Late Jurassic is the third Epoch (geology), epoch of the Jurassic Period, and it spans the geologic time scale, geologic time from 161.5 ± 1.0 to 143.1 ± 0.8 million years ago (Ma), which is preserved in Upper Jurassic stratum, strata.Owen ...

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 park A national park is a nature park designated for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes because of unparalleled national natural, historic, or cultural significance. It is an area of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that is protecte ...

s, 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) is a system formed by Organism, organisms in interaction with their Biophysical environment, environment. The Biotic material, biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and en ...

, partly because of the unique

microclimate A microclimate (or micro-climate) is a local set of atmosphere of Earth, atmospheric conditions that differ from those in the surrounding areas, often slightly but sometimes substantially. The term may refer to areas as small as a few square m ...

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 Hexapoda, hexapod invertebrates of the class (biology), class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body (Insect morphology#Head, head, ...

s, including 1700 of

beetle Beetles are insects that form the Taxonomic rank, order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Holometabola. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 40 ...

s and 1075 of

butterflies Butterflies are winged insects from the lepidopteran superfamily Papilionoidea, characterized by large, often brightly coloured wings that often fold together when at rest, and a conspicuous, fluttering flight. The oldest butterfly fossi ...

and 135 of

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class (biology), class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the Oviparity, laying of Eggshell, hard-shelled eggs, a high Metabolism, metabolic rate, a fou ...

Mammal A mammal () is a vertebrate animal of the Class (biology), class Mammalia (). Mammals are characterised by the presence of milk-producing mammary glands for feeding their young, a broad neocortex region of the brain, fur or hair, and three ...

s include the

beaver Beavers (genus ''Castor'') are large, semiaquatic rodents of the Northern Hemisphere. There are two existing species: the North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') and the Eurasian beaver (''C. fiber''). Beavers are the second-large ...

badger Badgers are medium-sized short-legged omnivores in the superfamily Musteloidea. Badgers are a polyphyletic rather than a natural taxonomic grouping, being united by their squat bodies and adaptions for fossorial activity rather than by the ...

, ermine and 15 species of

bat Bats are flying mammals of the order Chiroptera (). 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 birds, flying with their very long spread-out ...

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 consists of 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 througho ...

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, Biała Przemsza, 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 The Paleolithic or Palaeolithic ( years ago) ( ), also called the Old Stone Age (), is a period in human prehistory that is distinguished by the original development of stone tools, and which represents almost the entire period of human prehist ...

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. Historically, flint was widely used to make stone tools and start ...

, which attracted early humans.

Gallery

File:Jaskinia Ciemna.jpg, Statues of

Neanderthal Neanderthals ( ; ''Homo neanderthalensis'' or sometimes ''H. sapiens neanderthalensis'') are an extinction, extinct group of archaic humans who inhabited Europe and Western and Central Asia during the Middle Pleistocene, Middle to Late Plei ...

in the Dark Cave File:Skała Grodzisko a1.jpg, Highland

Outlier In statistics, an outlier is a data point that differs significantly from other observations. An outlier may be due to a variability in the measurement, an indication of novel data, or it may be the result of experimental error; the latter are ...

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 Kraków Gate may refer to: * Kraków Gate (Lublin) * Kraków Gate (Ojców National Park) {{disambig ...

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, 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 in Podzamcze File:Ogrodzieniec zamek 2.jpg, Ruins of the Ogrodzieniec Castle File:Ogrodzieniec-Zamek-Tamerlan.jpg, Ruins of the castle Ogrodzieniec File:Zamek w Olsztynie DK12 (2).jpg, Ruins of Olsztyn Castle 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 Smoleń Castle File:Polska Olsztyn(śląskie) 001.jpg, Ruins of

Gmina Olsztyn __NOTOC__ Gmina Olsztyn is a rural gmina (administrative district) in Częstochowa County, Silesian Voivodeship, in southern Poland. Its seat is the village of Olsztyn, Silesian Voivodeship, Olsztyn, which lies approximately south-east of Częstoc ...

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