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        1. European Alps

About the Alps region

Matterhorn, the symbol of the Alps

A fragile paradise

The Alps are one of the largest and highest mountain ranges in the world, forming an arc of 1200 km in length from Nice to Vienna and covering about 192,000 km².

The mountain range stretches across 8 different countries: France, Monaco, Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Germany, Austria and Slovenia. About 13 million people are distributed over approximately 6,100 communities in the Alps.

One of the most intensively exploited mountain ecosystems in the world, the Alps also represent one of the richest biodiversity hot spots in Europe.

A recent study found a total of 831 remote areas completely unaffected by humans, 69 of which are larger than 100 km². Most of these remote areas are high, inaccessible mountain zones.

With over 30,000 animal and 13,000 plant species the diversity of life the Alps is simply incredible. 20,000 invertebrates, 200 breeding birds, 80 mammals, 21 amphibians and 15 reptile species 'crowd' the Alps. 417 plant species are endemic, that is they are found only in this region.

Many animal species roam the Alpine territory. The most widely known are the ibex, the wolf, the bear, the lynx, the eagle and the chamois.

Human presence in the area dating back to Neolithic times has added to the scale of biological diversity. About a quarter of all plant diversity is man-made or depends on particular forms of agriculture.

The Alps are also Europe’s freshwater reservoir. The continent’s most important rivers are born in the Alps and travel great distances before reaching their final destinations in the Mediterranean or Atlantic seas. The Rhine, the Rhone and the Po rivers all originate in the Alps.

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