Animals and Plants
What is growing in the Czech Republic?
About a third of the Czech Republic is covered by forest. Above all beech, spruce, oak, pine and fir trees grow. However, the country’s national tree is the linden.
Untouched forest still grows in the Peklo, a valley in northern Bohemia. In particular, you can find black alder here. In springtime, the forest floor is covered with innumerable March cups. Orchids, mushrooms and mosses are also found in many species. For example, low pines and dwarf birches grow in the moors.
Which animals live in the Czech Republic?
Forests and fields, lakes, rivers and mountains provide a habitat for many animals. Lynx, otters, wild cats and mouflons as well as marmots, foxes and hares cavort in the Czech Republic. Typical forest animals are also red deer and roe deer.
In addition to mammals, many birds also live in the Czech Republic. For example, you can find wild geese, pheasants, owls, partridges, ducks and storks. Honey buzzard, hoopoe and eagle owl fly through the country. Brown trout and European grayling swim in the rivers.
Meandering and crawling, adder, smooth snake, grass snake, mountain lizard and mountain newt move around. The emerald lizard that lives in the south-west, in the Bohemian Forest, shows a particularly beautiful color.
Nature conservation in the Czech Republic
To protect nature, four national parks and numerous landscape protection areas have been established in the Czech Republic. The largest of the national parks, the Šumava National Park, is located in the Bohemian Forest. Many animal and plant species can still be found here that have become rare or are even threatened with extinction.
Because the border of the Iron Curtain ran here for a long time, nature was able to develop undisturbed. Lynx, elk, wolves and deer live here. The others are the Giant Mountains, Bohemian Switzerland and Thayatal National Parks. They all border on protected areas in neighboring countries.
Economy
Cars from the Czech Republic
The Czech Republic’s most successful company is arguably Škoda. Originally, Škoda was a mechanical engineering company. It was founded in 1859. Today cars are manufactured on the one hand, and trams on the other. 80 percent of Škoda cars are exported, mainly to China, Germany and Russia.
Industry generates a total of around 37 percent for the Czech Republic – agriculture only 2.3 percent. Wheat, sugar beet, potatoes and hops are grown. You need it for brewing beer, which has a long tradition in the Czech Republic. Cattle are also kept, especially cattle, pigs and chickens. Carp are also raised. A total of 54 percent of the country’s area is used for agriculture.
Economic situation: good!
Overall, the Czech economy is doing well. The economy is growing. The unemployment rate is low. They are even among the lowest in the EU. One problem, however, is the country’s dependence on its only industry, the automotive industry, which is based on exports. Besides, things don’t look equally good across the country. For example, the Central Moravia region in the east of the country is lagging behind.
Services make up 60 percent. This includes everything to do with finance, trade, gastronomy and telecommunications, but also tourism. Most of the visitors come from Germany, followed by those from Slovakia, Poland, China and the United States. A total of 21 million tourists came in 2018.
According to indexdotcom, the most important trading partner of the Czech Republic is Germany. The Czech Republic delivers almost a third of its exports to Germany. Slovakia, Poland, France and Great Britain follow at a distance. But Germany is also the largest supplier, followed by Poland, China, Slovakia and the Netherlands.