The Cozia National Park, known in Romanian as Parcul Național Cozia, is a type of national park classified as category II by the IUCN. It is located in the south-central part of Romania, specifically in the northeast area of Vâlcea County. The park is found within the administrative areas of several localities, including Brezoi, Călimănești, Racovița, Perișani, Sălătrucel, and Berislăvești.
Location
The National Park is located in the central and southern parts of the Southern Carpathians, in the southeast part of the Lotru Mountains, and east of the Căpățânii Mountains along the middle part of the Olt River.
Description
Cozia National Park covers an area of 171 km² and was established as a protected natural area by Law Number 5 on March 6, 2000 (published in the Romanian Official Paper, No. 152 on April 12, 2000). It is a mountainous region home to plants and animals typical of the Southern Carpathians. The park has many types of lichen, which were studied in 2007. In 2017, two ancient forests within the park were added to the Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians and Other Regions of Europe nature site.
This National Park has a wide variety of geological and landform features, including karst landscapes with sharp peaks, tower and needle karst, limestone ridges, caves, gorges, valleys, forests, meadows, and grasslands. It supports many different habitats, such as:
– Alluvial forests with black alder and ash trees (Alno-Padion, Alnion incanae, Salicion albae)
– Dacian beech forests of the Luzulo-Fagetum and Asperulo-Fagetum types
– Oak forests with hornbeam (Galio-Carpinetum type)
– Tilio-Acerion forests on steep slopes, screes, and ravines
– Dacian beech forests (Symphyto-Fagion)
– Acidophilous spruce forests in mountain areas (Vaccinio-Piceetea)
– Alpine and boreal shrubs
– Boreal and alpine meadows on siliceous soil
– Species-rich montane Nardus meadows on siliceous soil
– Tree line communities of tall grasses from lowland to alpine levels
– Siliceous screes from mountain to alpine levels (Androsacetalia alpinae and Galeopsietalia ladani)
– Mountain meadows
– Herb plants along mountain riverbanks
– Rocky slopes with plants growing in rock cracks on limestone
– Woody plants with Myricaria germanica along mountain rivers
– Woody plants with Salix eleagnos along mountain rivers
These habitats support a wide range of plant and animal life found in the Southern Carpathian region.