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Preface
The Retezat National Park, the first Romanian National park was established in 1935.
The long-lasting efforts that proceeded its founding are tied to the prestigious scientific
and nature protection activity of the great botanist prof. Alexandru Borza (1887 - 1971), who
emphasized, in 1916, and later, in 1928, that "the Retezat Mountains are predestined by nature
to hold a real national park, representative of large area". "This massif has been, until now,
state and private property, and has been well protected as a hunting ground. The complex of
peaks, alpine hollows, mountain lakes, alpine lawns, precipices and woods are comprised of
the Păpuşii Peak, Stînişoara, Groapa Şesele and Tăul Zănoaga and cover an area of about 1,000
ha. This area is completely exempt from grazing, hunting, clearing and fishing, because it is a
sanctuary of nature. Chamois, vulture, lynx, bear and wolf are still to be found here in large
numbers. The vegetation has large areas of dwarf pines, large groups of swiss stone pine
(Pinus cembra) and a flower-rich carpet, i.e. tens of species and varieties or hybrids of
Hieracium, which grow only here, and are often named in science after the local topography.
Retezat is also a real centre of tertiary botanical relics".
Retezat National Park is one of three model project sites chosen in the Biodiversity
Conservation Management Project; it is located in the Southern Carpathians and contains
38,138 hectares of pristine mountain forest and alpine ecosystems. Retezat’s unspoiled forests
are home to a variety of species: more than 1,100 species of plants; thousands of invertebrates
species; over 55 species of mammals, including wolf, lynx, bear, chamois, red deer and otter;
around 185 bird species including golden eagle, lesser spotted eagle owl, tengmalm's owl,
pygmy owl, three-toed woodpecker, and white-backed woodpecker; nine species of repiles; ten
species of amphibians; nine species of fish; 13 species of bats, etc.
Within the park, there are more than twenty mountain peaks over 2,000 meters in
altitude; the highest being the Peleaga Peak at 2,509 meters, which is centrally located and in
close proximity to Lake Bucura. Lake Bucura is the largest lake, 8.9 hectares, and is only one
of eighty lakes, most of them glacial in origin. Zănoaga Lake, the deepest Retezat National
Park lake is 29 m deep. A small portion of the park in the south is made up of limestone; this
section is called “The Small Retezat”. There are several caves in this area formed from the
naturally occurring chemical breakdown of the soft stone. The park offers visitors the chance
to view a wide variety of landscapes, as well as, the flora and fauna living in these diverse
ecosystems. There is much to do and see in Retezat National Park, but more importantly, there
is much to be protected and conserved so that it may exist for years to come.
Although not included within park boundaries, the historical sites and cultural
traditions surrounding Retezat make this park unique. While wandering through the
countryside around the park, one might see a shepherd grazing his sheep nearby, families
making traditional cuisine, farmers planting crops with a horse and plow, and a number of
medieval churches, monasteries, castles, and fortresses. The history of the area dates back to
the dinosaurs; archeologists have found the remains of the smallest dinosaur on the outskirts of
the park. The Romans also lived here leaving behind ruins of their castles and fortresses. It is
through this historical and cultural heritage that the park is defined.
In few words the Retezat Mountains represented always "The Mountain of Mountains"
for the Romanian and south-eastern researchers, the interest for this fascinating mountain was
spreading continuously over much of this part of Europe. Ecologists, biologists, geographers,
geologists etc., find in this "natural kingdom" a huge "spring" of professional satisfaction, their
hard work being from time to time put together between a publication covers, in the interest
and satisfaction of all which love the nature.
Well known till now are: Parcul Naţional Retezat, studii ecologice - Braşov 1993 and
Entomofauna Parcurilor Naţionale Retezat şi Valea Cernei - Cluj-Napoca 1997, both in
Romanian.
Inspired by the value of the area and the perseverence and work of previous
researchers, the Transylvanian Review of Systematical and Ecological Research editors,
generously sustained with the necesary printing funds by the Retezat National Park
Administration - „Biodiversity Conservation Management” Project, dedicated a first volume,
of this series, to the Retezat National Park.
The Retezat Mountains location (Badea et al., 1983 - modified).
No doubt that this new data will develop knowledge and understanding of the
ecological status of this special area and will continue to evolve.
Acknowledgements
The editors would like to express their sincere gratitude to the authors and the
scientific reviewers whose work made the appearance of this volume possible, and to the
Retezat National Park Administration, which supported the field work on which a part of the
necessary research was based, and also this volume printing expences. This volume came in to
being through the „Biodiversity Conservation Management” Project, a project suported by:
Global Environmental Facility, World Bank, Romanian Government and National Forest
Administration.
The Editors