Babia Gora National Park

Babia Gora National Park was established in 1954. The area of the Park is 3392 ha. 94% of the area is taken by forests communities. In 1976 UNESCO recognized the Park as the world reserve of the biosphere. The massif of Babia Gora (Babia Mountain) built of magurski sandstone constitutes a separate ridge of the Beskid Wysoki. It runs evenly with a parallel of latitude around 11 km, reaching the maximum height of 1725 meters (the peak of Diablak).

Babia Gora has a regular 4 layer configuration of flora. Among 25 plant communities, including 8 forest-thicket ones, one should mention the endemic group of calciphilous grass Saxifrago-Festucetum versicoloris babiogorense and the alpine dock Rumex alpinum, called “szczawiny” (the glade “Markowe Szczawiny”).

There are around 700 species of vascular plants in the Park, including 70 alpine species and 54 legally protected species, here is the only locality for the laserwort Laserpitum archangelica and the alpine cerastium Cerastium alpinum.

The fauna of the vertebrates comprises 166 species, including 2 species of fish, 6 species of amphibians, 5 species of reptiles, 115 species of birds, e.g. the wood grouse Tetrao urogallus, the black grouse Tetrao tetrix, the kestrel Falco tinunculus, the raven Corvus corax, 38 species of mammals (the bear Ursus artcos, the wolf Canis lupus). The fauna of invertebrates comprises 2437 species, including over 30 endemic species e.g. Otiorhynchus obtusus, 1300 species of cockchafers e.g. the relict Pseudanophtalmus pilosellus stobieckii.