Flora and fauna of the Carpathians

Found 275 species
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Herb RobertHerb RobertGeranium robertianumA small forest geranium with pink flowers and lace-like leaves that turn red in the sun. It grows in the shade, on rocks and walls.
Red campionRed campionSilene dioicaBright pink flowers with split petals on wet meadows and by streams. Blooms from May to autumn.
White butterburWhite butterburPetasites albusIn spring — whitish inflorescences on a scaly stem, in summer — huge round leaves along mountain streams.
Tree lungwortRed Data Book of UkraineTree lungwortLobaria pulmonariaA large leafy lichen of old beech forests, resembling lung tissue. A species in the Red Data Book of Ukraine.
Porcelain fungusEdible only after cookingPorcelain fungusOudemansiella mucidaWhite semi-transparent caps covered with slime on beech trunks. A fungus of the Carpathian beech forests; it has no food value.
Norway mapleNorway mapleAcer platanoidesA maple with pointed leaves that turns yellow and orange in autumn. It grows in deciduous forests of the foothills and in villages.
Black-berried honeysucklePoisonousBlack-berried honeysuckleLonicera nigraA mountain shrub with paired blue-black berries on a long stem. The berries are inedible—do not confuse them with blueberries.
Monk's rhubarbMonk's rhubarbRumex alpinusMonk's rhubarb with its huge round leaves. Its thickets on the polonynas indicate where the sheepfolds and stables used to stand.
Yellow stagshornYellow stagshornCalocera viscosaBright yellow 'coral' on decayed spruce stumps. An inedible mushroom, one of the most noticeable in coniferous forests.
False chanterellePoisonousIn season nowFalse chanterelleHygrophoropsis aurantiacaThe orange twin of the chanterelle with thin, branched gills. Not edible: may cause digestive upset. Grows from August to October.
Scarletina boleteEdible only after cookingScarletina boleteNeoboletus erythropusDark brown bolete with red pores and a speckled stem that instantly turns blue when cut. Conditionally edible: only after thorough cooking.
Bitter boleteBitter boleteTylopilus felleusA lookalike of the porcini mushroom with pink tubes and a dark mesh on the stem. Not poisonous, but very bitter: one mushroom can spoil the entire dish.
Carpathian scorpionCarpathian scorpionEuscorpius carpathicusYes, there is a local scorpion in the Carpathians — small, dark, and nearly harmless. It lives only in the warm valleys of the Romanian Carpathians.
Glacier buttercupPoisonousGlacier buttercupRanunculus glacialisGlacier buttercup with white flowers that grows on the highest granite cliffs of the Tatras. One of the highest alpine flowers in Europe. Poisonous.
Slovak pasqueflowerPoisonousSlovak pasqueflowerPulsatilla slavicaLarge purple fluffy flowers on limestone rocks in Slovakia in April. An endemic of the Western Carpathians, the only place it grows in Poland. Poisonous.
Tatra larkspurPoisonousTatra larkspurDelphinium oxysepalumA tall plant with clusters of blue-violet flowers, found only in the Western Carpathians — in the Tatras, Low Tatras, Little Fatra, and on Velký Choč. Poisonous.
AuriculaAuriculaPrimula auriculaYellow fragrant flowers on the limestone cliffs of Slovakia and the Polish Tatras. They bloom in spring and smell like apricots.
Carpathian snowbellCarpathian snowbellSoldanella carpaticaPurple bell-shaped flowers with fringes that bloom near the snow in the Tatra Mountains and on Babia Góra. An endemic of the Western Carpathians.
Clusius' gentianClusius' gentianGentiana clusiiA large sapphire-blue cup-shaped flower on a tiny stem is a highlight of the limestone Tatra Mountains in spring. It grows only in the Tatras in Poland.
Large blue hepaticaLarge blue hepaticaHepatica transsilvanicaBlue flowers of early spring in the mountain forests of the Romanian Carpathians. The species grows only in Romania and nowhere else in the world.
Moss campionMoss campionSilene acaulisA dense green cushion sprinkled with pink flowers on the highest rocks of the Tatras and Romanian Carpathians. An Arctic plant that has survived in the high mountains.
Tatra saxifrageTatra saxifrageSaxifraga wahlenbergiiDense green cushions with white flowers in the moist crevices of Tatra rocks. The species grows only in the Western Carpathians and nowhere else in the world.
Common wall lizardCommon wall lizardPodarcis muralisA nimble lizard of rocks, walls, and ruins. In the Carpathians, it lives in Slovakia, Hungary, and Romania; it is absent from the Ukrainian Carpathians.