**2. The border area of the High and Belianske Tatras (Slovakia)**

The area of interest represents the border area between the High Tatras and the Belianske Tatras (**Figure 1**), which are parts of the Tatra Mountains. We chose it because of its rarity and uniqueness, but also because of the damage caused by human activities during the past and at present.

#### **2.1 Characteristics of the area**

The Tatra Mountains belong to the Alpine and Himalayan system and are a part of the extensive range of the Carpathian Mountains, spreading over the territories of Austria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland, Ukraine, Romania and Serbia. The entire mountain range covers approximately 210,000 km2 , the length of the Carpathian arch reaches 1,500 km, the width ranges from approximately 12 to 350 km [18]. The highest part of the Carpathians are the Tatras, namely the High Tatras and Gerlachovský Peak with an altitude of 2654 m, which is their highest peak. Within the Carpathians, the study area belongs to the extensive mountain province of

## *Vegetation Dynamics, Changing Ecosystems and Human Responsibility*

**Figure 1.** *Study area (Source: mapy.cz).*

**Figure 2.** *The High Tatras – the tarn Veľké Biele pleso (1615 m MSL) (Piscová, 2021).*
