Domogled-Valea Cernei

Domogled-Valea Cernei National Park lies in south-western Romania, in the Southern Carpathians, between the counties of Caraș-Severin, Gorj and Mehedinți, and protects some 612 km² along the valley of the Cerna river. It was declared in 1990, in the first great wave of Romanian national parks after the fall of the communist regime.

The Cerna valley is deep and abrupt, set between the Mehedinți and Cernei mountains, with abundant karst features, gorges and hot springs; at its southern end lies the spa town of Băile Herculane, whose waters have been exploited since Roman times. The climate, with a sub-Mediterranean influence, allows the presence of thermophilous species uncommon at this latitude, including relict stands of black pine on limestone crags.

In July 2017 its virgin beech forests were added to the World Heritage List as part of the serial property of the ancient and primeval beech forests of Europe. The Romanian component of Domogled-Valea Cernei comprises three sectors linked by a continuous forest block: Domogled-Coronini-Bedina, Iauna Craiovei and Ciucevele Cernei. Its most notable feature is that the forest extends up into the subalpine belt, which is exceptional and of great interest for studying the effects of global warming on the treeline. The fauna is Carpathian, with the three great European carnivore species.