Near Crasna Village, Southern Carpathians, Romania Photograph by A. I. Solyom   Eastern Europe: Czech Republic, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, and Ukraine Temperate Coniferous Forests   48,300 square miles (125,000 square kilometers) -- about the size of North Carolina Vulnerable

· Highs and Lows
· Special Features
· Did You Know?
· Wild Side
· Cause for Concern
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Highs and Lows

Central Europe is dominated by the Carpathian Mountains--an extension of the Alps--which form a long 62-mile (100 km) wide arc across the region, stretching from Poland to Ukraine and Romania. Mountain pastures and forests of dwarf pine, elm, and spruce help define this ecoregion. The dominant geographical feature in this ecoregion are the Tatras, the highest mountain range of the Carpathians.

Special Features

This long and narrow ecoregion links western and eastern Europe and thus harbors a broad range of biodiversity. For example, 2,000 plant species grow in the eastern-most part of the ecoregion--and over 100 of them are endemic. Elevation extremes also add to the diversity. Grasslands and rock communities interspersed with coniferous trees dominate above 5,900 feet (1800 m). At lower altitudes, forests of pine and oak grow.

	If you hear a sharp, high-pitched whistle while walking in the Tatra Mountains, look for the Tatra chamois. This beautiful mountain goat alerts others in its group by whistling; then they all retreat to nearby cliffs where they can escape almost any predator.

Wild Side

Parts of this ecoregion, including Przemysl Plateau Landscape Park in Poland and the Latorica River flood plain in Slovakia, have been designated as Important Bird Areas by Bird Life International. Well-preserved areas in the Carpathians are home to deer, boars, chamois, marmots, bears, and wolves. The only healthy population of lynx still surviving in Europe are found in the Carpathian Mountains. The endangered European bison feed on the abundant deciduous trees and heathers. Wild cats feast on rodents and will even eat migrating eels that are found crawling overland.

Cause for Concern

Agricultural intensification and expansion is the most serious threat affecting areas across this ecoregion. Increasing recreation and tourism, development and fragmentation of habitat, and poaching of endangered wildlife are other important threats.

For more information on this ecoregion, go to the World Wildlife Fund Scientific Report.