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Bulgaria

Bulgaria has 125 Important Plant Areas covering 1,721,248 hectares. Of these, 68% qualify through the presence of both threatened species and threatened habitats.

IPAs in bulgaria

Situated in the north-eastern part of the Balkan Peninsula and covering an area of 110 990 km2, Bulgaria’s wildlife reflects her transitional location between the Central European and the Mediterranean biogeographic zones. The Danube and Romania form the northern boundary; to the east lies the Black Sea, to the west Macedonia (FYR) and Serbia, and to the south Greece and Turkey.

Two thirds of Bulgaria is mountainous and forested, with 200 peaks higher than 2000m.

Centaurea mannagettae - threatened Bulgarian endemic

Centaurea mannagettae a Bulgarian endemic, one of the many Centaurea species restricted to the Balkans / Kiril Metodiev

The plant life is particularly rich with an incredible 3900 vascular plants, 6000 species of fungi, and 6000 algae. They include a considerable number of limited range species, 174 plant species endemic to Bulgaria and over 300 Balkan endemics. Particularly prevalent amongst these are the genera Centaurea, Cyanus, Dianthus, Thymus, Sedum, Verbascum and Viola.

The same levels of diversity exist within vegetation and habitat types; 89 (38.4%) of the 232 European habitats of conservation importance are present in Bulgaria. Broadleaf deciduous forests dominated by oak (seven species), and beech (three species), are the largest major habitat type in Bulgaria, followed by Picea and Pinus dominated coniferous forests and then grassland habitats. Along the Black sea coast lie well preserved sand dune habitats.

Bulgaria has 125 Important Plant Areas covering 1,721,248 hectares. Of these, 68% qualify through the presence of both threatened species and threatened habitats.

74 IPAs are either fully or partly within protected areas and many contain more than one level of protection. 51 of them are currently unprotected. The greatest threats to the IPAs are poor forestry practices and development (effecting over 50%) and agricultural intensification (effecting 34%).

Half of Bulgaria’s IPAs are associated with agriculture, and the maintenance of traditional farming systems on these sites is crucial, as is the need for widespread sustainable forestry practices.

Fact-sheets on the Bulgarian IPAs are available on the IPA Online Database.

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