The Măcin Mountains () is a

mountain range A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have aris ...

Tulcea County Tulcea County () is a county (județ) of Romania, in the historical region Dobruja, with the capital city at Tulcea. It includes in its northeast corner the large and thinly-populated estuary of the Danube. Demographics In 2021, Tulcea Coun ...

, Romania. Part of the Northern Dobruja Massif, they are located between

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 ...

River to the north and west, Taița River and ''Culmea Niculițelului'' to the east and Casimcea Plateau to the south. Seen from the Danube, they seem only low hills. However, they are a mountainous region. The Măcin Mountains are one of the oldest in Romania, being formed in the second part of the

Paleozoic The Paleozoic ( , , ; or Palaeozoic) Era is the first of three Era (geology), geological eras of the Phanerozoic Eon. Beginning 538.8 million years ago (Ma), it succeeds the Neoproterozoic (the last era of the Proterozoic Eon) and ends 251.9 Ma a ...

, in the

Carboniferous The Carboniferous ( ) is a Geologic time scale, geologic period and System (stratigraphy), system of the Paleozoic era (geology), era that spans 60 million years, from the end of the Devonian Period Ma (million years ago) to the beginning of the ...

and

Permian The Permian ( ) is a geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system which spans 47 million years, from the end of the Carboniferous Period million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Triassic Period 251.902 Mya. It is the s ...

, during the Hercynian orogeny. The predominant rock is

granite Granite ( ) is a coarse-grained (phanerite, phaneritic) intrusive rock, intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly coo ...

. Erosion (caused by the difference of temperature) has created steep slopes, with the aspect of ruins. They are divided in ''Culmea Măcinului'' (the southern part) and ''Culmea Pricopanului'' (the northern part). The highest peak is ''Țuțuiatu'' (also called ''Greci''), which has a height of 467 meters. Other important peaks are ''Priopcea'' Hill (410 m) and ''Muntele lui Iacob'' (Iacob's Mountain – 341 m).

Vegetation and avifauna

Besides the Balkanic and sub-Mediterranean forests, the Măcin Mountains also have a considerable swathe of steppe, making it a delightful site for birds. The area is a staging point for various migratory bird species, especially raptors, who arrive here in autumn. The region is home to species such as European turtle dove, red-rumped swallow, common and isabelline wheatears, ortolan bunting and several others. Măcin Mountains are also the hunting grounds of the long-legged buzzard (''Buteo rufinus''), one of Europe's largest buzzards. It shares the mountains with other birds of prey such as short-toed eagle, booted eagle, Levant sparrowhawk and saker falcon.

References

Mountain ranges of Romania Dobruja Geography of Tulcea County {{Romania-geo-stub

Vegetation and avifauna

See also

References