Torfeno Branishte ( / ‘Turf Reserve’) is a

nature 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 ...

on Vitosha Mountain in

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

, along with the

Bistrishko Branishte Bistrishko Branishte () is a nature reserve in the Vitosha Nature Park on Vitosha Mountain in Bulgaria. It was established in 1934, together with Vitosha Nature Park. Since 1977 it has been a biosphere reserve under the ''Man and the Biospher ...

reserve. The reserve has a surface area of 728.8 ha comprising the parts of Big Plateau and the Kapaklivets Plateau between the peaks of Cherni Vrah (2290 m), Ushite (1906 m), and Chernata Skala (1869 m), including the upper watersheds of the Vladayska, Boyanska and Dragalevska Rivers. Torfeno Branishte was created in 1935 to preserve the pristine turf communities in the

Subalpine zone Montane ecosystems are found on the slopes of mountains. The alpine climate in these regions strongly affects the ecosystem because temperatures lapse rate, fall as elevation increases, causing the ecosystem to stratify. This stratification is ...

of Vitosha, with hundreds of

moss Mosses are small, non-vascular plant, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic phylum, division Bryophyta (, ) ''sensu stricto''. Bryophyta (''sensu lato'', Wilhelm Philippe Schimper, Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryo ...

and

algae Algae ( , ; : alga ) is an informal term for any organisms of a large and diverse group of photosynthesis, photosynthetic organisms that are not plants, and includes species from multiple distinct clades. Such organisms range from unicellular ...

species. The turf surface is 0.6 to 2 m thick, increasing by 1 mm annually. Access to the reserve is strictly forbidden because along with its conservation status Torfeno Branishte is also a drinking water

catchment area A catchment area in human geography, is the area from which a location, such as a city, service or institution, attracts a population that uses its services and economic opportunities. Catchment areas may be defined based on from where people are ...

Ecology

The constantly wet,

acidic An acid is a molecule or ion capable of either donating a proton (i.e. hydrogen cation, H+), known as a Brønsted–Lowry acid, or forming a covalent bond with an electron pair, known as a Lewis acid. The first category of acids are the ...

environment has contributed for the developing a unique

ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) is a system formed by Organism, organisms in interaction with their Biophysical environment, environment. The Biotic material, biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and en ...

. The deeper parts of the reserve are covered in communities of Sphagnum Capillifolium, Sphagnum Warnstorfii, and other types of

sphagnum ''Sphagnum'' is a genus of approximately 380 accepted species of mosses, commonly known as sphagnum moss, also bog moss and quacker moss (although that term is also sometimes used for peat). Accumulations of ''Sphagnum'' can store water, since ...

. The territory is virtually treeless, with some shrub communities such as sallow,

juniper Junipers are coniferous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Juniperus'' ( ) of the cypress family Cupressaceae. Depending on the taxonomy, between 50 and 67 species of junipers are widely distributed throughout the Northern Hemisphere as far south ...

and

blueberry Blueberries are a widely distributed and widespread group of perennial flowering plants with blue or purple berries. They are classified in the section ''Cyanococcus'' with the genus ''Vaccinium''. Commercial blueberries—both wild (lowbush) ...

, and the occasional

mountain pine ''Pinus mugo'', known as dwarf mountain pine, mountain pine, scrub mountain pine, Swiss mountain pine, bog pine, creeping pine, or mugo pine, is a species of conifer, native to high elevation habitats from southwestern to Central Europe and So ...

. The ground flora consists mainly of plants from the family

Cyperaceae The Cyperaceae () are a family of graminoid (grass-like), monocotyledonous flowering plants known as wikt:sedge, sedges. The family (biology), family is large; botanists have species description, described some 5,500 known species in about 90 ...

. Gentiana, the red Aven,

Geum ''Geum'' , (Latinized Greek for "taste" referencing the roots of the plant) commonly called avens, is a genus of about 50 species of rhizomatous perennial herbaceous plants in the rose family and its subfamily Rosoideae which are widely distrib ...

coccineum, and

Saxifraga ''Saxifraga'' is the largest genus in the family Saxifragaceae, containing about 473 species of holarctic perennial plants, known as saxifrages or rockfoils. The Latin word ''saxifraga'' means literally "stone-breaker", from Latin ' ("rock" or " ...

Rotundifolia are also relatively common plants. It is also one of the few places in Bulgaria where one can see the rare native carnivorous plants - Pinguicula Balcanica,

Drosera ''Drosera'', which is commonly known as the sundews, is one of the largest genus, genera of carnivorous plants, with at least 194 species. 2 volumes. These members of the family Droseraceae lure, capture, and digest insects using stalked mucil ...

Rotundifolia, and two species of

Utricularia ''Utricularia'', commonly and collectively called the bladderworts, is a genus of carnivorous plants consisting of approximately 233 species (precise counts differ based on classification opinions; a 2001 publication lists 215 species).Salmon, B ...

, found in small ponds - Utricularia Minor and Utricularia Australis. On very rare occasions, visitors can see the bright yellow flowers of Trollius europaeus there. The fauna is rich, too.

Deer A deer (: deer) or true deer is a hoofed ruminant ungulate of the family Cervidae (informally the deer family). Cervidae is divided into subfamilies Cervinae (which includes, among others, muntjac, elk (wapiti), red deer, and fallow deer) ...

wolves The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the grey wolf or gray wolf, is a canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, including the dog and dingo, though gr ...

, wild pigs, and, rarely,

bear Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family (biology), family Ursidae (). They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats ...

s have been known to cross the reserve. On the higher parts, the very rare Spalax Leucodon can also be found.

External links

Image Gallery

References

BG Globe: About Vitosha Mountain

Vitosha Nature Park
Website.
Bulgaria Tour: Vitosha Nature Park

Vitosha Map
{{Protected areas of Bulgaria Nature reserves in Bulgaria Vitosha Geography of Sofia City Province Protected areas established in 1935 1935 establishments in Bulgaria

Ecology

See also

External links

References