Ciucaș Mountains, Ciucaș Natura 2000 site

The Ciucaș Mountains belong to the Curvature Carpathians and lie east of the upper Teleajen and Tărlung rivers. They border the Tătaru and Siriu mountains to the south-east and east, the Întorsura depression and Întorsura mountains to the north and the Grohotiș mountains to the west. Apart from Ciucaș Peak (1,954 m), the highest summits are Gropșoarele (1,883 m), Tigăile Mari (1,845 m), Bratocea (1,827 m), Zăganu (1,817 m) and Muntele Roșu (1,765 m). The massif is protected by the Ciucaș Site of Community Importance (ROSCI0038), designated by Order no. 1964 of 13 December 2007 of the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development and covering 21,968.8 hectares. The site extends into Brașov County, in the town of Săcele and the communes of Tărlungeni and Vama Buzăului, and into Prahova County, in the communes of Cerașu and Măneciu. It is crossed by the DN1A road and includes the Tigăile din Ciucaș nature reserve and the Măneciu Dam. A Ciucaș national park was proposed in 2008 but was never created. About 60% of the area is forest, and the site contains 22 habitat types of Community interest: beech and spruce forests, larch and Swiss stone pine woods, relict pine forests on limestone, dwarf mountain pine and rhododendron scrub, alpine grasslands and scree. Its waters drain to the Buzău, Teleajen and Tărlung basins. The massif lies in the Carpathian flysch zone, and its upper level is formed of conglomerates attributed to the Middle Cretaceous. Species recorded in the site include brown bear, wolf, lynx, chamois, otter, capercaillie, golden eagle, lady's slipper orchid, edelweiss, Siberian ragwort (Ligularia sibirica) and three land snails of the genus Alopia (A. canescens, A. helenae, A. nefasta). From Prahova, access is along the DN1A via Vălenii de Munte and Măneciu to Cheia, and from Brașov along the DN10 and DJ103A to Vama Buzăului.