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Wienerwald




The Wienerwald (English: "Vienna Woods") is a wooded Promontory of the Alps in eastern Lower Austria , located at the border between the Mostviertel and the Industrieviertel , two of the four quarters of Lower Austria. Its foothills reach far into the city limits of Vienna .

The mountain ranges of the Wienerwald are the transition of the Eastern Alps to the Carpathians , separated by the Danube and some tectonic lines near of Vienna. Its north is part of the Alps' Sandstone zone, while its south is part of the Northern Limestone Alps . In the east, its border is the Thermal Line , which forms a geological break line to the Viennese Basin . The Forest in the north consists largely of Beeches , Oak s and Hornbeam s, whereas in the south Conifer s, mostly Pine s and Fir s add to the botanical mix. In the latter region the natural park Föhrenberge (''pine mountains'') is located.

The highest elevation in the Wienerwald is the Schöpfl at 893 m above Sea Level , on which the Leopold Figl Observatory is located. Even though the Wienerwald is a Landscape Conservation Area , it is threatened by Urban Sprawl . It is an important recreational area, in which, on the territory of the city of Vienna, the Lainzer Tiergarten (so-called zoological garden of Lainz , an extensive park populated by Boar s and other animals of the forest) and the '' Schwarzenbergpark '' were created during the 19th century.
The natural park of ''Sandstein-Wienerwald'' is located near Purkersdorf , some 20 km west of Vienna.

The Wienerwald has probably been populated since the 8th century. Under the influence of the Avars , a Slavic population settled here after the Völkerwanderung , which may account for village names such as Döbling , Liesing or Gablitz . The Wienerwald was a princely hunting ground, but beginning with the 16th century, it gained importance also for Forestry . From 1840 onwards, the industrial development encouraged increased settlement of the area. In 1870 , plans were brought forward to mostly clear the forest, but this caused widespread public resistance, in which Josef Schöffel was one of the most important figures.

In 1987 , the governors of the states of Vienna , Lower Austria and Burgenland signed the so-called ''Wienerwald declaration'' to protect nature in the region.

Important Rivers in the Wienerwald are the Wien , the Schwechat and the Triesting .

There are also some natural Caves , such as the Dreidärrischenhöhle ("cave of the three madmen").


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