Sharri

Sharri National Park was established in 1986 in southern Kosovo, on the northern flank of the Šar mountains, and protects some 530 km². It adjoins Šar Planina National Park, declared in North Macedonia in 2021 on the other side of the divide.

The massif rises above 2,600 metres and shows well-preserved glacial relief, with cirques, moraines and numerous high-altitude lakes. The vegetation combines beech and fir woods on the slopes with stands of Macedonian pine, the relict five-needled conifer endemic to the Balkans, and extensive subalpine meadows.

Its flora is among the richest on the Balkan peninsula, with a high number of local and Balkan endemics, and the massif is regarded as one of the most important centres of plant diversity in south-eastern Europe. The wildlife includes Balkan chamois, brown bear, wolf, Balkan lynx and capercaillie. The high meadows have supported transhumant sheep farming for centuries, which has shaped the landscape and is part of the area's cultural value, along with the villages of traditional architecture in its valleys.