Rodope Mountain, Greece Photograph by © WWF-Canon/Michel GUNTHER   Southern Europe: Bulgaria with small extensions into Greece, Macedonia, and Yugoslavia. Temperate Broadleaf and Mixed Forests   12,200 square miles (31,600 square kilometers) -- about twice the size of Hawaii Critical/Endangered

· Location and General Description
· Biodiversity Features
· Current Status
· Threats
· Ecoregion Justification
· References
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The Rodope Montane Mixed Forests Ecoregion is composed of the Balkan (Stara Planina) and Rhodope Massifs in the central Balkan Peninsula. Central European in character, mixed deciduous forests (Fagus sylvatica, Carpinus orientalis, C. betula, Quercus spp.) grow on mountain slopes while the higher elevations are dominated by conifers (Abies alba, Picea albies, Pinus nigra). On the highest peaks, forests are replaced by heaths and alpine grasslands. It is estimated that the flora of the region includes about 3,000 vascular plant species. Many are endemics from the Pleistocene glaciation, as the region served as a refuge for species that never re-established to the north. The position of the ecoregion at the crossroads of several floristic elements (European, Alpine, and Mediterranean) also enhances floral diversity . Several of Europe’s threatened fauna species are found here such as otter (Lutra lutra), pine marten (Martes martes), imperial eagle (Aquila heliaca), cinereous vulture (Aegypius monachus), and ferruginous duck (Aytha nyroca). Although there is a good network of protected areas, the ecoregion faces many threats from the changing political climate, expanding agriculture, and increasing tourism.

Location and General Description

Biodiversity Features

Current Status

Types and Severity of Threats

Justification of Ecoregion Delineation

This ecoregion is equivalent to the DMEER (2000) unit of the same name. It includes the lowland to altimontane beech and mixed beech forests, montane to altimontane, partly submontane fir and spruce forests, and montane to altimontane hemiboreal and nemoral pine forests of the Balkan and Rodope mountains of Bulgaria and Greece (Bohn et al. 2000).

References

Bohn, Udo, Gisela Gollub, and Christoph Hettwer. 2000. Reduced general map of the natural vegetation of Europe. 1:10 million. Bonn-Bad Godesberg 2000.

Davis, S.D., V.H. Heywood, and A.C. Hamilton. 1994. Centres of plant diversity. Vol. 1: Europe, Africa, Southwest Asia and Middle East. WWF and IUCN, Washington DC.

Digital Map of European Ecological Regions (DMEER), Version 2000/05

(http://dataservice.eea.eu.int/dataservice/metadetails.asp?table=DMEER&i=1)

Heath, M.F., and M.I. Evans, editors. 2000. Important bird areas in Europe: Priority sites for conservation. 2 vols. BirdLife International, Cambridge, UK.

Heinzel, H., R. Fitter, and J. Parslow. 1977. Pareys Vogelbuch - Alle Vögel Europas, Nordafrikas und des mittleren Ostens. Aufl. Verl. P. Parey, Hamburg, Berlin.

IUCN 2000: The Global Redlist of Species, of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. URL: <http://www.redlist.org>

Ozenda, P. 1994. Végétation du Continent Européen. Delachaux et Niestlé, Lausanne, Switzerland.

Stanners, D., and P. Bourdeau, editors. 1995. Europe's environment: The Dobris assessment. European Environment Agency, Copenhagen.

Wheatley, N. 2000. Where to watch birds in Europe and Russia. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey.

For more general information on this ecoregion, go to the WildWorld version of this description.