Stužica is a uniquely preserved and undisturbed primeval beech

Beech

Beech is a genus of ten species of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia and North America.-Habit:...

 forest of the Eastern Carpathians range. It is located in Slovakia

Slovakia

The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...

 and borders with Poland

Poland

Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...

 and Ukraine

Ukraine

Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...

. The forest has been protected since 1908 and in 1993 the area was upgraded to a National Nature Reserve. In 2007 Stužica and several other locations in the range were declared part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site

World Heritage Site

A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...

. Together with six components in Ukraine they form Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians

Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians

Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians and the Ancient Beech Forests of Germany is a transnational composite nature site. The Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians include 10 separate massifs located along the long axis from the Rakhiv mountains and Chornohora ridge in Ukraine over the...

with outstanding universal value.

External links

• Stužica Virgin Forest