Haydushki Chukar forest reserve

Overview

Haydushki Chukar is a forest reserve with a total area of over 31 hectares. It has been established to preserve the virgin beech forest in the area "Haidushki Chukar", located near the village of Buynovtsi, Elena municipality.

The forest consists mainly of beech, mixed with maple, six, breccia, and others. It has been regenerating itself in a natural way. The nearest settlement is the village of Gorni Tanchovtsi, which is located about 5 km north of the reserve. Other nearby settlements are the villages of Miykovtsi, Topuzi, and Nikolchovtsi.

The territory of the reserve falls in the southwestern part of the protected area BG0000211 Tvardishka Mountain, which is part of the European ecological network NATURA 2000. It occupies 0.10% of the area.

The reserve is close to ecotourism destinations and routes.
The Kom-Emine National Tourist Route passes near the southern border of the reserve. The Bukovets and Chumerna huts are also relatively close to the reserve.

Haydushki Chukar is important for the protection of the beech forest ecosystem. It is of interest from a research and educational point of view as a territory that has preserved the natural character and integrity of the ecosystem and landscape. In the adjacent areas of the reserve, there are various opportunities for ecotourism activities, which are subject to study in accordance with environmental legislation.

With the adoption of the Protected Areas Act, the reserve was transformed into exclusively state property and it was transferred to the Ministry of Environment and Water for management and administration. Research on the reserve is extremely insufficient for the purposes of sustainable management. Field studies were conducted in 2010 during the development of the Protected Area Management Plan. An inventory of the forests in the Haidushki Chukar reserve has also been carried out.