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Kosovo

Europe

313

Documented species

2

Parks and reserves

Kosovo is a territory of basins ringed by high mountains, with two national parks that take up a notable share of its surface. The Bjeshkët e Nemuna, a continuation of the Albanian Alps, form glacial cirques, limestone walls and beech and pine forests where brown bears, wolves and Balkan chamois move, along with the Balkan lynx, detected very sporadically on camera traps. The Sharr range, to the south, keeps relict stands of Bosnian pine, high-altitude pastures grazed for centuries and a flora rich in Balkan endemics. The Rugova canyons and the stepped Mirusha waterfalls, cut into travertine, are the country's most singular river landscapes. The headwaters hold native trout, and the mountain pastures remain tied to transhumance with the Sharr shepherd dog.

Nature in Kosovo

National animal: No official national animal

Did you know?

In the forests near Pristina a sanctuary has operated since 2013 to take in the so-called restaurant bears: animals that spent years shut in tiny cages in full view of the customers of bars and hotels as a commercial draw. When the practice was banned, the bears, unable to survive in the wild, were moved to wooded enclosures where many stepped on soil and grass for the first time in their lives.

Biodiversity profile

Conservation

Historic mining at Trepça and river pollution are the main environmental liability. Camera-trap monitoring of the Balkan lynx is coordinated with North Macedonia and Albania within the same regional programme.

Where and when to watch wildlife

Bjeshkët e Nemuna in summer for chamois and cliff birds. Sharr in spring for the flowering of the pastures and mountain birds. The Rugova canyon year-round for raptors.

Parks and reserves

National Park

Bjeshkët e Nemuna

The Kosovan side of the Accursed Mountains, with relict glaciers and one of the richest biodiversities in the Balkans.

See park
National Park

Sharri

The Šar Mountains, with Macedonian pine forests and one of the richest endemic floras in the Balkan Peninsula.

See park

Similar countries

Where else might I want to travel?

Slovenia

Same region: The Balkans

Croatia

Same region: The Balkans

Montenegro

Same region: The Balkans

Albania

Same region: The Balkans

Species documented in Kosovo

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Conservation

313 species found

Keep exploring

Based on what we already know about Kosovo.

ParkBjeshkët e Nemuna

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This page in other languages: Español · Deutsch · Français · Português · Italiano
European EelCritically Endangered

European Eel

Anguilla anguilla

Spanish TerrapinVulnerable

Spanish Terrapin

Mauremys leprosa

Giant NoctuleVulnerable

Giant Noctule

Nyctalus lasiopterus

Common PochardVulnerable

Common Pochard

Aythya ferina

Black-tailed GodwitNear Threatened

Black-tailed Godwit

Limosa limosa

Northern LapwingNear Threatened

Northern Lapwing

Vanellus vanellus

Stag BeetleNear Threatened

Stag Beetle

Lucanus cervus

European RabbitNear Threatened

European Rabbit

Oryctolagus cuniculus

West European HedgehogNear Threatened

West European Hedgehog

Erinaceus europaeus

European Pond TurtleNear Threatened

European Pond Turtle

Emys orbicularis

Red Wood AntNear Threatened

Red Wood Ant

Formica rufa

Bechstein's BatNear Threatened

Bechstein's Bat

Myotis bechsteinii

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