PLANTS
The Central Balkan National Park has an exceptional wealth and diversity of plants.
To date, 2,340 plant species and subspecies have been identified within its boundaries. These
include:1,900 species and subspecies of higher plants, 15 fern species, 1 each of Lycopodia and
Selaginella, 3 Equiseta, 166 species of medicinalplants—12 of which are protected by law,
229 species of mosses, and 256 species of macrofungi (over 12% of all identified in Bulgaria).
Higher plants account for more than half of the Bulgarian flora. Of these,
10 species and 2 subspecies can only be found in the Central Balkan National Park.
A total of 697 species of higher plants have been identified in
nine representative sampling grounds around the Park. In the high-mountain treeless
zone alone, there are 676 higher plant species, including cereal grasses, lady’s mantles,
campanulas, communities of Bruckenthalia spiculifolia, bear berry, bilberries.
There are 9 locally endemic, 10 nationally endemic, and 67 regionally endemic
(Balkan Peninsula) species within the Park. Thirty species are protected under Bulgarian
law, 81 are listed in the Red Book of Bulgaria, 9 on the European Red List, and 10 are
globally endangered (according to the World Conservation Union (IUCN)). Examples include
the Transylvanian campanula, starry lady’s mantle, Kerner’s Thistle, and Stefchov’s
stonecrop.
The Central Balkan National Park contains 49 types of
habitats—24 are of high conservation significance according to the CORINE classification.
The Park is instrumental in protecting endangered, rare, and protected plant species.
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