Mondoeco Nature Sites

From this section, sites of nature showed on a map from the top menu, are here reported as a list.
You can narrow your serach for a park, a reserve or a route from the entry-mask below. 


 

City-Village: Tipologia
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Situated north of Norwich at the Norfolk coast, this biosphere reserve includes a wide range of habitats, from intertidal sands and muds, through shingle ridges, to saltwater and freshwater marshes. The saltmarshes are of great value for breeding and wintering wildfowl and includes a large breeding colony of common seals. Other habitats comprise mires, river valleys, heathlands, chalk and cliff-top grasslands, woodlands and farmland. Many tourists frequent the area, notably for beach activities and birdwatching. There arises some pressure on specific sites due to these activities. Other...
Germany’s largest pond region is represented by this biosphere reserve. It extends approximately from Kamenz in the West to the Neisse River in the East. The biosphere reserve is characterized by a vast diversity of habitats varying extremely in a small area. For instance, ponds are located right next to sandy dunes. In addition, the transition from Atlantic to continental climate in this area explains the rich species diversity. The Sorbs, Slavic settlers who immigrated in the 6th century to this region, still maintain their traditional customs and language today. Approximately 10,000...
This biosphere reserve is situated on the eastern part of the Greece mainland and covers the eastern limestone foothills and the summit of Mount Olympus (2,914 meters above sea level). The landscape comprises maquis and Mediterranean sclerophyll shrublands, beech and oak woodlands, pine (Pinus nigra) forests as well as montane grasslands and alpine areas. The biosphere reserve is managed as a national park and hence there are no settlements within the area. As almost all areas in the Mediterranean, this area was subject to heavy grazing and timber extraction in the past. Today, local...
This biosphere reserve comprises the Ordesa and Monte Perdido National Park ( 18% nucleus zone) and the Viñamala Hunting Reserve. It consists of the Ordesa Valley, a canyon with vertical walls, being the result of successive glaciations during the Quaternary period, and the valley of the Arazas River, confluent with the Ara River, with a large number of waterfalls. The massif of Monte Perdido and the heads of the valleys of Ordesa, Añisclo, Escuain, and Pineta have been recently included in the Park (1982). Viñamala is mountainous with an imposing massif subsequently...
UNESCO Biosphere Reserve Parangalitza - Bulgaria - Blagoevgrad
Parangalitza Biosphere Reserve is situated on the southwestern side of the Rila Mountains in the Blagoevgrad region in western Bulgaria. The reserve was established in 1933 to protect the undisturbed primary forests, particularly the Norway spruce (Picea abies) and various pines. It was declared a biosphere reserve in 1977. It covers an area of 1509 hectares from 1400 to 2485 meters above sea level and includes about 400 hectares of the oldest conifers in Bulgaria (150-350 years old). Other habitats include sub-alpine and alpine vegetation. The flora is represented by more than 290 species of...
UNESCO Biosphere Reserve Paúl do Boquilobo - Portugal - Golegã Municipality
 Paúl do Boquilobo Biosphere Reserve in Central Portugal consists of a natural freshwater wetland surrounded by marshes, which lie in a bend of the Almonda River. Floods from the Tejo River naturally inundate the site in winter and part of it subsequently dries out when the water table is mechanically lowered in spring to create larger areas for cultivation. The site may also act as a flooding buffer zone contributing to increased protection of adjoining farmland areas against erosion caused by winter floods. For many years this wetland has been a valuable sink for alluvial...
UNESCO Biosphere Reserve Pays De Fontainebleau - France - Briarres-sur-Essonne
Located in the Ile de France region, some 70 km south-east of Paris, this biosphere reserve is composed of temperate deciduous forest (mainly oak, Scots pine and beech), heathlands, open rock areas and several wetlands. The forest lies upon an ancient marine sand-bank which is occasionally overlaid by sandstone. The sandbank lies on a layer of Brie limestone and green marl, where springs arise. The soils within the forest area are highly diverse, which also is one explanation for the high plant diversity, as more than 5,800 plant species have been identified so far. The biosphere reserve...
The Redes Biosphere Reserve is the third biosphere reserve in the Cantabrican mountain range in the Province of Asturias. It is characterized by great biological and cultural diversity and is part of the effort to create a Gran Cantabrican Biosphere Reserve together with Somiedo and Muniellos that would be the first biosphere reserve in Europe to cover an entire ‘ecoregion’. Redes comprises two parts characteristic of the Cantabrian Mountains: the karst limestone areas in the eastern regions, and the silica, quartzite, slate and sandstone areas in the west. These different...
UNESCO Biosphere Reserve Rhön - Germany - Forst Schmalwasser-Süd
This biosphere reserve is situated in the low mountain ranges of the Rhön in the centre of Germany. In contrast to other German low mountain areas, the Rhön is also known as the ’land of open vistas’ representing an open cultural landscape shaped by human use since many centuries. Naturally, the region would be covered by beech forest (Fagus sylvatica), however extensive farming and dairy cow raising transformed forests mainly into montane and sub-montane humid grasslands on siliceous soils. Two bogs host numerous endangered animal and plant species. The region is also...
Riding Mountain Biosphere Reserve is located in south central Canada, some 300 km north-west of Winnipeg, Manitoba. It is situated at the junction of the grassland and boreal forest biome. Forests cover most of the area, dominated by aspen (Populus tremuloides). Although grasslands occupy only 7,400 of the total 1,331,800 hectares, they are of national importance since they exist as discrete units and the rare climax rough fescue community represents the eastern extent of its range. This was the reason for its designation as a national park (core area of the biosphere reserve). The grasslands...
This biosphere reserve is situated in the south-eastern part of Rügen, Germany’s biggest island. Within its 22,800 hectares, almost all coastal forms of the southern Baltic Sea can be found. It includes areas of ground and terminal moraine hills deposited after the last ice age and Holocene depositional features such as sand bars. The inland waters are shallow, interrupted by peninsulas, small islands and hooked spits. Moraine areas are dominated by Fagus sylvatica and Pinus sylvestris forests, however, also pastures, low productive grasslands and coastal vegetation of brackish...
 The Schaalsee Biosphere Reserve is located in the Land Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in northern Germany and covers 30,257 hectares. A special characteristic of this relatively small area is the diverse landscape with a variety of habitats. It is characterized by semi-natural ecosystems of woods, bogs, lakes and dry sites. The Schaalsee itself is a lake originating as a glacial tongue basin from the Weichsel glacial period. Some 8,000 people live in the biosphere reserve (1998), making their living mainly from agriculture, fishery, forestry and tourism. There is a high potential for the...
The landscape of the Schorfheide-Chorin Biosphere Reserve was shaped during the ‘Weichsel’ glaciation about 10,000 years ago. In this biosphere reserve, situated to the north of Berlin, all geomorphological features of the postglacial lowlands of northern Germany can be found. In the transition area of maritime and subcontinental climate, the ‘Schorfheide’ belongs to the driest parts of Germany. The natural potential vegetation of the biosphere reserve comprises mixed beech forests, oak-beech forests, pine-oak forests, mixed oak forests and dry subcontinental...
The geographical situation of this biosphere reserve near the Mediterranean and Atlantic coast (Gibraltar strait), and the altitudes of its mountains provoke the Mediterranean humid climate in Sierra de las Nieves. It consists of a great limestone mountainous landscape presenting rocks and lithologies belonging to the Betica Mountain Range. The altitudes of the reserve range between 100 meters above the sea level near the Mediterranean coast and 1,919 meters above sea level, in the Torrecilla peak. It comprises various botanic endemism and flower formations as the ‘Spanish fir’...
UNESCO Biosphere reserve Sinharaja - Sri Lanka - Ratnapura
Sinharaja is the largest continuous evergreen rain forest remaining in the lowland wet zone of Sri Lanka. Its importance for conservation is linked to its high endemism of flora and fauna. In 1971, 2,500 hectares of the Forest Reserve was transformed into a IUCN-IBP Strict Reserve with full protection for flora and fauna. In 1977, all timber exploitation in the entire forest was banned and in 1978, it was designated as a MAB Biosphere Reserve. Only 84 families were residing in the southern part of the reserve. There are 544 families living in peripheral villages (according to the statistics...
Southwest Nova represents the natural region of southwestern Nova Scotia. This encompasses the five counties: Queens, Shelburne, Yarmouth, Digby and Annapolis. The biosphere reserve comprises major landscapes of the province, which exist in a near-pristine condition with intact ecosystem structure, processes and functions. Located in the boreal needleleaf forest biogeographical region, it includes rolling plains, river plains, glacial plains, hills, drumlins and coastal cliffs. As a result of its unique southerly position in the Maritimes, the region contains significant disjunctive...
Terras do Miño located in Galicia, is a traditional cultural landscape with many highly important natural habitats and erosive accumulation of terraces systems associated to specific sections of the Río Miño. The Miño river network drains southwest Galicia in the Iberian Hercynian Massif. The zone is the transition area between the Western and the Northern continental edges characterized by deeply entrenched streams. It plays an important role in hydric regulation of the whole region. It comprises evergreen sclerophyllous forests, woodlands and scrub, lagoons and...
UNESCO Biosphere Reserve Urdaibai - Spain - San Sebastian
The Urdaibai Biosphere Reserve is located in the Euro Siberian region, on the Bay of Biscay coast, in the north of the Iberian Peninsula. Urdaibai covers an area of 220 km2 with around 45.000 inhabitants, the 80% of them concentrated in the towns of Gernika and Bermeo. The territory is characterized by a hydrographic basin that ends creating a great salt marsh and a coastal landscape with high sheer cliffs and capes. The craggy inside countryside is occupied by meadow land, oak groves, leafy woods and specially by fast-growing conifers. The coastal landscape is covered with cantabrian woods...
Located in the north-west of Corsica, this biosphere reserve follows the limits of the Fango Valley watershed. The Fango River is a mountain torrent that flows into the Gulf of Galéria in Corsica. The biosphere reserve rises from the level of the Mediterranean sea up to an altitude of 2,556 meters above sea level. The different altitude zones are clearly represented in the strongly characteristic Mediterranean-type valley with evergreen broadleaf forest and Mediterranean maquis. The mouth of the Fango River is a biologically rich mosaic noted particularly for its bird life, amphibians...
This biosphere reserve is located in the large mountain area of Mount Velebit at the Adriatic Sea. With an altitude ranging from 0 to 1,757 meters above sea level, the area represents a 145 km long and 10-30 km wide stretch of karst landscape. The maritime slope is barren karst, whereas woodlands cover the central mountain ranges and the Lika slope. Habitat diversity is very rich, comprising pine (Pinus halepensis) woodlands, submediterranean shrub (Paliurus spina-christi, Carpinus orientalis), beech (Fagus sylvatica) woods, fir and beech woods (Abies alba), pine woods (Pinus nigra),...
UNESCO Biosphere Reserve Vessertal-Thüringen Wald - Germany - Schmiedefeld am Rennsteig
This biosphere reserve is located in the Thuringian forest and is crossed by the famous German hiking trail ‘Rennsteig’. The biosphere reserve comprises mainly large contiguous mountain spruce forests. Furthermore, beech forests, block and rock forest communities, high-elevation raised bogs can be found. Upland, low-lying and valley meadows reflect the extensive use by people for dairy cow raising. The entire biosphere reserve has been designated as Natura 2000 site and European Bird Protection Area because of black grouse (Tetrao tetrix) and black stork (Ciconia nigra)...
Located along the French/German border, the Vosges du Nord/Pfälzerwald share three natural features: water, sandstone and forests. Sandstone outcrops characterize the vast forest belt where people manage beech, oak and pine forest. Springs, streams and lakes are found in the humid valleys. The occurrence of lynx (Lynx lynx), the peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus) and the bog arum (Calla palustris) gain much attention from a nature conservation perspective. The Natural Parc of Vosges du Nord (France) was designated as a biosphere reserve in 1988, and the Pfälzerwald Natural Park...
The meadows of the Wienerwald are particularly rich in species. Many rare and some endangered species of plants flower here, such as the Bug Orchid (Orchis coriophora), and grasses such as Danthonia alpina or Sesleria uliginosa. On the rough meadows one can still admire Lathyrus pannonicus, Fringed Pink (Dianthus superbus), Late Spider Orchid (Ophyrs fuciflora) and the large, bizarre Lizard Orchid (Himantoglossum hircinum)....source
UNESCO Biosphere Somiedo - Spain - Somiedo
Somiedo comprises alpine ecosystems on the peaks (up to 2,100 meters above sea level) and high ridges of the Cantabrican range, as well as slopes covered by beech woods, green oak or Pyrenean oak, and swift flowing streams in the meadows lining the bottom of the U-shaped glacial valleys. The beech woods are home to capercaillie (Tetrao urogallus), and the woodlands support many animals species, including a substantial population of brown bears, lynx, chamois and a number of species of amphibians and reptiles restricted to the north of the Iberian Peninsula. The local population (some 1,600...
The Bras d‘Or estuary and its associated watershed is one of Canada‘s charismatic ecosystems. The Holocene transgression flooded a complex river-lake system of diverse geology, creating a small, deep inland sea with twelve significant watersheds draining both highlands and lowlands. Its position at the nexus of the Greenland Current, the Gulf of St. Lawrence, and the Gulf Stream‘s “meander” fostered post-glacial colonization from Arctic, temperate and tropical regions. The resulting marine biodiversity includes representative organisms from environments...
UNESCO Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Reserve - Canada - Alberni-Clayoquot C
The Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Reserve, totaling approximately 349,947 hectares, is situated on Vancouver Island on the west coast of British Columbia. A diverse range of ecosystems exists within the biosphere reserve boundaries, including temperate coastal rainforest, ocean, rocky coastal shores. Nine of the large forested valleys remain untouched by logging or other industrial development. The area’s temperate rainforest, lakes, rivers, alpine peaks, provide habitat for a vast array of species, a significant number of which is endangered or rare. Given that development is increasingly...
This biosphere reserve encompasses the largest island archipelago of the North American Great Lakes. Known locally as “The Thirty Thousand Islands”, it is a complex association of bays, inlets, sounds, islands and shoals lying along the edge of the Canadian Shield bedrock which rises as low lying hills and ridges on the adjacent mainland. This topography supports a rich mosaic of forest, wetlands, and rocky habitat types with associated biodiversity. It also has high scenic values which attract large numbers of summer residents, cruising boaters, and seasonal visitors. The number...
This biosphere reserve is located on the east coast of Vancouver Island in British Columbia. It is close to the Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Reserve, located on the other side of the island. Situated in the Coastal Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) biogeoclimatic zone, the forests in the area were logged in the early 1900’s. Today, second-growth trees are reaching harvestable size which leads to pressures from the logging industries. Approximately 38,000 residents live permanently in the area, which can total up to 43,000 people depending on the season (2000). Coastal Salish First...
The Niagara Escarpment Biosphere Reserve in Ontario stretches 725 km from Lake Ontario (near Niagara Falls) to the tip of the Bruce Peninsula (between Georgian Bay and Lake Huron). The Escarpment corridor crosses two major biomes: boreal needle leaf forests in the north and temperate broadleaf forest in the south. It also includes wetland complexes, cliff faces, slopes and aquatic ecosystems. The biosphere reserve includes the provincial Niagara Escarpment Plan Area and two national parks. There is a backbone of strictly protected lands at and near the cliff face. The biosphere reserve is...
UNESCO Plitvice Lakes National Park - Croatia - Plitvička Jezera
Croatia's first National park established in 1949 covers 296.85 km2 of breathtaking natural splendor becoming with it the largest among the eight national parks of the country. Ranging in altitude from 367 m (Koranski most) to 1279 m (Seliški vrh) above sea level. The park was inscribed on the UNESCO's World Heritage List in 1979, in recognition of its "outstanding natural beauty and undisturbed production of travertine (tufa) through chemical and biological action". The park represents a phenomenon of karst hydrography. The park harbours a grand collection of waterfalls,...
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