Soproni Tájvédelmi Körzet

The area of the Sopron Landscape Protection Zone is 4095 hectares, of which 705 hectares are intensively protected. The landscape protection zone falls under the administration of the Fertő–Hanság National Park Directorate.

Characteristics

The 4905 ha area of the Sopron Mountains in Hungary was declared a landscape protection zone in its entirety on March 30, 1977. The nature conservation manager of the Sopron Landscape Protection Zone is the Fertő–Hanság National Park Directorate. 85% of its area is forest, and 15% is meadow.

The landscape protection zone actually consists of a smaller and a larger part: the smaller part, lying east of Sopron, is the Harkai Cone, composed of crystalline pine, which is a protected area mainly because of its botanical significance.

Flora and Fauna

The area is indicated by the following plant species that occur massively with montane, Atlantic‑Carpathian and Atlantic‑Mediterranean distribution:

heather (Calluna vulgaris)

black bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus)

sweet chestnut (Castanea sativa)

forest cyclamen (Cyclamen purpurascens)

European royal fern (Matteuccia struthiopteris)

mezereum (Daphne mezereum)

saw-wort (Cirsium erisithales)

white stonecrop (Petasites albus)

Its animal life is also extremely rich, which likewise confirms the area's zoogeographical distinctiveness, main protected species:

powdered moth

spotted salamander

midwife toad

black stork

Uhu

mountain pipistrelle

crossbill

smoky‑head bunting

swift trout

common sandpiper

Cultural Values

On Várhegy between Sopron and Brennbergbánya, archaeologists uncovered a Celtic‑Illyrian Iron Age cemetery (Hallstatt culture) in the basin of an extensive ditch and sand system. From the more than two‑hundred, then three‑thousand‑year‑old graves, they excavated many tools and weapons.

The remnants of former coal mining can be seen at the Brennberg mine. The mining settlement was built around the row of opening pits from the middle of the 18th century; its structure still preserves this characteristic. The protected landscape area is easily traversable with a tourist map. Knowledge acquisition is also aided by the Cyclamen educational trail.

External links

The Fertő-Hanság National Park website

The Fertő-Hanság National Park website – the description of the Sopron TK

Sources of the Sopron mountainous region Archived with the date October 14, 2015 in the Wayback Machine

Article on the Na-Túra website