Belarus has five national parks. Vegetation covers over 93 percent of the land in those parks and one-third of that vegetation is forestland. The East European country's Belavezhskaya Puscha National Park, located southwest of Minsk, is designated a United Nations World Heritage Site. Belarus has some of the last primeval forests left in Europe.
Various animals considered endangered are native to Belarus. Included are the European bison, European mink and Saker falcon. Belavezhskaya Puscha National Park has the largest population of free-roaming European bison in the world. The population of the European mink has dropped by more than half in just the last three generations, and the Saker falcon has gone through a rapid decline in population due to capture for falconry and habitat degradation.
One predator that resides in Belarus is the Eurasian lynx, which is the largest of the lynx species and the third largest predator in Europe. It prefers deciduous forests, such as Belavezhskaya Puscha National Park, where it feeds on red deer and other prey animals. Eurasian lynx can grow up to 36 inches in length and weigh up to 62 pounds.
The Berezinsky Biosphere Reserve in Northeast Belarus is home to 230 species of birds. The reserve has approximately 20 wood grouse and 30 black grouse families. Black grouse are roughly the size of a domestic hen. The birds participate in a territorial and breeding display known as a lek. They gather in open woodland to strut, fan out their tails and spread their wings. Females sit at the edge and select mates from the males gathered in the lek.
Two snake species found in Belarus are the adder and smooth snake. Smooth snakes are constrictors, meaning they wrap themselves around their prey and suffocate them. They are 19 to 23 inches long and can live for up to 12 years in the wild . The adder is a venomous snake, and it grows to an average of 21 inches in length.
Plants and trees are plentiful in Belarus. Birch and pine trees make their home across the country. Conifers inhabit the northern areas of the country and oak trees proliferate in the South. The national flower of Belarus is the flax, which dies once it receives the heat generated by the mid-day sun. The Pripyat National Park, contains over 200 types of mosses.
