The Pálava Protected Landscape Area (abbreviated Pálava PLA; , abbreviated ''CHKO Pálava'') is a protected landscape area and a

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

biosphere reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, funga, or features of geologic ...

located in the

South Moravian Region The South Moravian Region (; , ; ), or just South Moravia, is an Regions of the Czech Republic, administrative unit () of the Czech Republic, located in the south-western part of its historical region of Moravia. The region's capital is Brno, th ...

in the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

, on the border with

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

. The highest point is

Děvín Děvín () is a double summit, double peak mountain in the Pavlov (Břeclav District), Pavlov municipality in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. With an elevation of , it is the highest mountain of the Pavlov Hills within the Mikulov ...

with its a.s.l.

Description

This unique area was originally recognized by UNESCO in 1986 and expanded in 2003 to include another UNESCO site, the

Lednice–Valtice Cultural Landscape The Lednice–Valtice Cultural Landscape (also Lednice–Valtice Area or Lednice–Valtice Complex, ) is a cultural-natural landscape complex of in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It comprises the municipalities of Lednice, Valt ...

. Pálava PLA is dominated by the limestone Pálava Hills (part of the outer

Western Carpathians The Western Carpathians () are a mountain range and geomorphological province that forms the western part of the Carpathian Mountains. The mountain belt stretches from the Low Beskids range of the Eastern Carpathians along the border of Poland w ...

), and contains a significant proportion of natural or little affected

steppe In physical geography, a steppe () is an ecoregion characterized by grassland plains without closed forests except near rivers and lakes. Steppe biomes may include: * the montane grasslands and shrublands biome * the tropical and subtropica ...

ecosystems that include meadow steppe, forest steppe, and

thermophilic A thermophile is a type of extremophile that thrives at relatively high temperatures, between . Many thermophiles are archaea, though some of them are bacteria and fungi. Thermophilic eubacteria are suggested to have been among the earliest bact ...

oak forest. In the floodplain of the river

Thaya The Thaya (, ) is a river in the Czech Republic and Austria, a right tributary of the Morava (river), Morava River. It flows through the South Moravian Region in the Czech Republic and through Lower Austria in Austria. It is formed by the conflue ...

, forests alternate with meadows and wetland habitat that also include

halophytic A halophyte is a salt-tolerant plant that grows in soil or waters of high salinity, coming into contact with saline water through its roots or by salt spray, such as in saline semi-deserts, mangrove swamps, marshes and sloughs, and seashores. ...

vegetation. The remaining part of Pálava PLA is used agriculturally, with many sustainably farmed

vineyard A vineyard ( , ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines. Many vineyards exist for winemaking; others for the production of raisins, table grapes, and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is kno ...

s that are a part of the

Mikulovská wine Mikulovská is one of four Czech wine regions within southern Moravia, Czech Republic. The Mikulovská wine region, containing 30 wine villages, is famed for producing white wines grown in the limestone soils, particularly in and around the area o ...

subregion. Pálava PLA contains well preserved monuments of historical significance, such as the

Paleolithic The Paleolithic or Palaeolithic ( years ago) ( ), also called the Old Stone Age (), is a period in human prehistory that is distinguished by the original development of stone tools, and which represents almost the entire period of human prehist ...

site in Dolní Věstonice where the

Venus of Dolní Věstonice The Venus of Dolní Věstonice () is a Venus figurine, a ceramic statuette of a nude female figure dated to 31,000–27,000 years ago (Gravettian industry). It was found at the Paleolithic site Dolní Věstonice in the Moravian basin south of ...

was discovered. The largest town in Pálava PLA is

Mikulov Mikulov (; ) is a town in Břeclav District in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 7,600 inhabitants. From the 16th to the 19th century, it was the cultural centre of the Jewish community of Moravia. The historic centr ...

, located in its southernmost part.

Gallery

Zřícenina hradu Děvičky z úbočí Děvína.JPG, Děvičky Castle ruins over Nové Mlýny Reservoir Skály na vrcholu děvína.JPG, Děvín Zřícenina Sirotčí hrádek.JPG,

Sirotčí hrádek Sirotčí hrádek (also Sirotčí hrad, Sirotčí hrady or Růžový hrad; or ''Rosenstein'') is a ruin of a Gothic castle in the municipality Klentnice in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. The origins of the castle date back to ...

castle ruins Svatý kopeček u Mikulova.JPG, Svatý kopeček hill over

Protected landscape areas in the Czech Republic Biosphere reserves of the Czech Republic Protected areas of the Western Carpathians Geography of the South Moravian Region Tourist attractions in the South Moravian Region Břeclav District {{Europe-protected-area-stub