Vogelsberg Mountains

The Vogelsberg Mountains are a group of low mountains in central Germany, located in the middle of the state of Hesse. They are the product of ancient volcanic activity and are separated from the Rhön Mountains by the Fulda River and its valley.

Arising approximately 19 million years ago, the Vogelsberg, Germany's only shield volcano, is also Central Europe's largest basalt formation, consisting of a multitude of layers which, having flowed over each other, fall downward from their peak in ring-shaped terraces to the base.

The main peaks of the Vogelsberg are Taufstein, 773 m (2,536 ft), and Hoherodskopf, 763 m (2,503 ft), both now enclosed in a national park, the Hoher Vogelsberg Nature Reserve.

Vogelsberg is German for "bird's mountain", making the name "Vogelsberg Mountains" a redundancy.

In recent years the Eurasian Lynx returned.

External links

* [http://www.osthessen-news.de/beitrag_A.php?id=1129488 in German, return of the Eurasian Lynx]