The mainprotected areas of Croatia arenational parks, nature parks and strict reserves. There are 444protected areas ofCroatia, encompassing 9% of the country. Those include 8national parks in Croatia, 2 strict reserves and 11nature parks. The most famous protected area and the oldestnational park in Croatia is the Plitvice Lakes National Park, aUNESCO World Heritage Site. Velebit Nature Park is a part of the UNESCOMan and the Biosphere Programme. The strict and special reserves, as well as the national and nature parks, are managed and protected by the central government, while other protected areas are managed by counties. In 2005, the National Ecological Network was set up, as the first step in preparation of the EU accession and joining of theNatura 2000 network.[1]
The total area of all national parks in the country is 930 km2 (359 sq mi), of which 235 km2 (91 sq mi) is sea surface. Each of the national parks is maintained by a separate institution, overseen and funded by the government ministry of nature conservation and spatial development. TheState Institute for Nature Protection provides centralized oversight and expertise.
All eight national parks are located inkarst area.
| # | Name | Image | Area | Website | Established in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Plitvice Lakes |  | 296.9 km2 (114.6 sq mi)[2] | www | 1949 |
| 2 | Paklenica |  | 95.0 km2 (36.7 sq mi)[3] | np-paklenica | 1949 |
| 3 | Risnjak |  | 63.5 km2 (24.5 sq mi)[4] | www | 1953 |
| 4 | Mljet |  | 53 km2 (20 sq mi)[5] | www | 1960 |
| 5 | Kornati |  | 217.0 km2 (83.8 sq mi)[6] | www www | 1980[6] |
| 6 | Brijuni |  | 33.9 km2 (13.1 sq mi)[7] | www | 1983 |
| 7 | Krka |  | 109.0 km2 (42.1 sq mi)[8] | www | 1985 |
| 8 | Sjeverni Velebit |  | 109.0 km2 (42.1 sq mi)[9] | www | 1999 |
| # | Name | Image | Area | Website | Established in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kopački Rit |  | 231.0 km2 (89.2 sq mi) | pp-kopacki-rit | 1967 |
| 2 | Medvednica |  | 179.4 km2 (69.3 sq mi) | www | 1981 |
| 3 | Velebit |  | 2,270.0 km2 (876.5 sq mi) | www | 1981 |
| 4 | Biokovo | .jpg) | 193.0 km2 (74.5 sq mi) | pp-biokovo | 1981 |
| 5 | Telašćica |  | 70.5 km2 (27.2 sq mi) | pp-telascica | 1988 |
| 6 | Lonjsko Polje |  | 506.5 km2 (195.6 sq mi) | pp-lonjsko-polje | 1990 |
| 7 | Žumberak-Samoborsko gorje |  | 217 km2 (84 sq mi) | www | 1999 |
| 8 | Učka |  | 160.0 km2 (61.8 sq mi) | www | 1999 |
| 9 | Papuk |  | 336.0 km2 (129.7 sq mi) | www | 1999 |
| 10 | Vrana lake | _(25940706252).jpg) | 57.0 km2 (22.0 sq mi) | www | 1999 |
| 11 | Lastovsko otočje |  | 196.0 km2 (75.7 sq mi) | pp-lastovo | 2006 |
| 12 | Dinara |  | 630.5 km2 (243.4 sq mi) | www | 2021 |
There are 80 special reserves in Croatia:[10]