Plant · GBIF taxon 5285385
mountain pine
Pinus mugoAlso known as Mugo Pine, Dwarf Mountain Pine, Swiss Mountain Pine, Bog Pine
Mountain pines form dense, twisted thickets across the rocky subalpine zones and bogs of central and southern Europe. Their flexible prostrate branches bend easily under heavy winter snowpack without breaking, anchoring thin mountain soils and preventing avalanches. Dark green paired needles and small rounded brown cones make this resilient conifer a defining feature of high-elevation landscapes.
AlpineEvergreenConifer
—observations
—countries
—peak records
Least ConcernConservation statusIUCN Red List categoriesLCNTVUENCREWEXLeast ConcernRed List categories, explained →
Diet & prey
- Photosynthetic
Predators
- Pine Bark Beetles
- Red Squirrels
- Pine Sawflies
ThreatsClimate warming, habitat degradation, severe wildfires
HabitatsSubalpine slopes, mountain bogs, rocky alpine scrublands
Life span100–300 years
Size / weightNot available
Classification
- OrderPinales
- FamilyPinaceae
- GenusPinus
- SpeciesPinus mugo
Range data is not available yet.
Interaction riskLow
- Low
- Moderate
- High
- Very high
- Why interaction risk is low
- Safe to observe at a normal distance.
Responsible observation
- Needle Identification: Look for stiff, twisted dark green needles arranged in pairs.
- Snow Adaptation: Notice how lower branches hug the ground to withstand heavy snow cover.
- Trail Etiquette: Stay on designated paths to avoid damaging delicate alpine soil crusts.
Image unavailableSubalpine Companion 
Frequent Companion (c) Jens-Christian Svenning, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Jens-Christian Svenning · cc-by
Close Relative (c) anemoneprojectors (no internet at the moment), some rights reserved (CC BY-SA) · cc-by-sa
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