Irmak Nature Park

Nature park in Sarıyer, Istanbul, Turkey

41°10′47″N 28°58′29″E / 41.17972°N 28.97472°E / 41.17972; 28.97472Area10 ha (25 acres)Established2011Governing bodyDirectorate-General of Nature Protection and National Parks
Ministry of Environment and Forest

Irmak Nature Park (Turkish: Irmak Tabiat Parkı) is a nature park located in Sarıyer district of Istanbul Province, Turkey.^[1]

Irmak Nature Park is situated across Kirazlıbent Nature Park inside the Belgrad Forest and is west of Bahçeköy, Sarıyer. The area was declared a nature park by the Ministry of Environment and Forest in 2011, and is one of the nine nature parks inside the Belgrad Forest. It covers an area of about 10 ha (25 acres). The protected area is named for the creek (Turkish: Irmak) running through the protected area.^[1]^[2]

The nature park offers outdoor recreation activities such as hiking, cycling and picnicing for visitors on daily basis.[2] There are playgrounds for children. Admission is charged for visitors and vehicles.^[1]

Ecosystem

Flora

Vegetation of the nature park is dense wood of deciduous trees comprising sessile oak (Quercus petraea), Kasnak oak (Quercus vulcanica), hornbeam (Carpinus betulus), European alder (Alnus glutinosa), sweet chestnut (Castanea sativa), blackthorn (Prunus spinosa), laurestine (Viburnum tinus), common ivy (Hedera helix), butcher's-broom (Ruscus aculeatus) and blackberry (Rubus).^[1]

Fauna

Animals mainly observed in the Belgrad Forest are wild boar, golden jackal, deer, roe deer, fox, gray wolf, marten, hare, squirrel, porcupine, wood mouse, the reptile tortoise and the bird species buzzard, hawk, magpie, crow, woodpecker, passer, finch and goldfinch.^[1]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e "Irmak Tabiat Parkı" (in Turkish). İstanbul Tabiat Parkları. Retrieved 2017-05-06.
^ "Tabiat Parkları - Irmak Tabiat Parkı" (in Turkish). Orman ve Su İşleri Bakanlığı-1. Bölge Müdürlüğü-İstanbul Şube Müdürlüğü. Retrieved 2017-05-06.