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The Beskydy Protected Landscape Area is, according to the Nature Conservation Agency of the Czech Republic, the largest protected landscape area in the Czech Republic. It was established on 30 March 1973, and its elevation ranges from 350 to 1,323 metres.[1] It extends along the north-eastern border of the country in the rugged mountains of the Outer Western Carpathians. It covers almost the entire area of the Moravian-Silesian Beskids, a substantial part of the Vsetín Hills, and the Moravian part of the Javorníky, which form the border with Slovakia. On the Slovak side it directly adjoins the Kysuce Protected Landscape Area, and to the south it borders the White Carpathians Protected Landscape Area.[1][2]
Landscape and Reasons for Protection
The Carpathians continue from the east of Czechia in an arc through several countries, stretching more than 1,200 kilometres. The highest part of the Carpathian range on Czech territory is formed by the Moravian-Silesian Beskids, the Javorníky and the Vsetín Hills, which have belonged to a single protected area since 1973.[2] The administration of the protected landscape area describes it as a region of fir-beech primeval forests, orchid meadows and wooden churches, a popular tourist destination and home to bears, wolves and lynxes.[2] The highest peak is Lysá hora, at 1,323 metres, which, according to the administration, offers the best views in the country.[2]
The area was designated mainly because of its original primeval forest stands containing rare Carpathian plant and animal species. Also protected are species-rich meadow communities, exceptional surface landforms and underground pseudokarst phenomena. The administration also emphasises the aesthetic value of the landscape, which arose from the historical coexistence of people and nature.[1]
Specially Protected Areas
To provide greater protection for the most valuable sites, 60 small-scale specially protected areas have been designated, comprising 7 national nature reserves, 28 nature reserves and 25 natural monuments.[1]
Natura 2000
The entire territory of the protected landscape area is designated within the Natura 2000 network as the Beskydy Site of Community Importance. Its conservation objectives cover 18 types of natural habitats, 11 animal species and 3 plant species. The plant species are Aconitum firmum subsp. moravicum, the green shield-moss and the varnished hook-moss. The protected animal species include the thick shelled river mussel, the vermilion flat bark beetle, Rhysodes sulcatus, the pitted ground beetle, the Carpathian newt, the yellow-bellied toad, the greater mouse-eared bat, the Eurasian otter and three species of large carnivores — the Eurasian lynx, the grey wolf and the brown bear.[1]
Two bird areas are also designated within the region: Beskydy in the northern part and Horní Vsacko in the southern part. They protect ten forest bird species and two farmland bird species, including the black stork, the black woodpecker, the western capercaillie, the hazel grouse, the Eurasian pygmy owl and the corncrake.[1]
Other Statuses and Monuments
The territory of the protected landscape area overlaps with the Beskydy Protected Area of Natural Water Accumulation. It contains several village and town heritage zones and numerous listed monuments, including national cultural monuments such as the Pustevny complex and the Wallachian Open Air Museum. Part of the territory lies within the Beskydy Dark Sky Area, centred around the villages of Bílá and Staré Hamry, which extends across the border with Slovakia into the Kysuce Protected Landscape Area.[1]
Visitor Information
According to the website of the protected landscape area's administration, it operates an information centre in Dolní Lomná, which provides information on natural attractions, tourist destinations and events in the Beskids.[2]