# Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise park: around 50 bears

> The Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise park dates from 1922 and holds most of Italy's Marsican bears: around 50, in a range of 45 to 69, on 50,500 hectares of park.

URL: https://myitalia.it/nature/parco-abruzzo-lazio-molise
Last updated: 2026-09-11

The Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise National Park, founded privately in 1922 and set up by law in 1923, covers around 50,500 hectares and holds the largest group of bears in Italy: around 50 Marsican brown bears, in a range of 45 to 69.

## Around 50 bears, and no year on the count

The park authority estimates the Marsican brown bear population at around 50 animals, within a range of 45 to 69.

It's the most numerous bear group in Italy, and it lives almost entirely inside this park, spreading slowly into the land around it.

The authority cites recent studies but gives no year for the estimate, so read the number as the park's current figure rather than a dated census. A genetic monitoring program funded under Italy's recovery plan was under way in 2026 and should produce a newer one.

## What a count of 50 means on the trail

Around 50 animals is a population small enough that every avoidable disturbance counts, and you are one of the variables.

The park's own rules for visitors, from the areas with capped access to how close you may get to wildlife, are not in the facts verified here. Read them on the park authority's site or at a visitor center before you walk, and follow them to the letter.

A sighting isn't something the park sells, and nothing on this page promises one. For how this bear differs from the one in the Alps, see [the Marsican bear and the Trentino bear](/compare/marsican-bear-vs-trentino-bear).

## 1922, 1923 and a name that grew

The park began in 1922 as a private initiative and became law in 1923 with Royal Decree-Law 257.

It was the Abruzzo National Park until 2001, when the name took in Lazio and Molise to match the ground it already covered. How it began is told in [1922, the first two parks](/stories/1922-the-first-two-parks).

## 24 comuni, three regions, one headquarters

The park covers 24 comuni, 12 in Abruzzo, 7 in Lazio and 5 in Molise, with its headquarters in Pescasseroli.

- Park area: 50,500 hectares
- Contiguous area around it: 77,500 hectares
- Integral reserves: 4,400 hectares
- Forest: 30,000 hectares
- Park rangers: 32

The highest summits are Monte Petroso at 2,249 meters, Monte Marsicano at 2,245 and Monte Meta at 2,242. Lake Barrea is a wetland protected under the Ramsar convention.

## Beech forests on the UNESCO list

Val Cervara, inside the park, is where its oldest tree grows, a beech estimated at 560 years, and it's also one of 13 Italian components of the UNESCO ancient beech forests.

The park's other record tree is a black pine at Villetta Barrea, estimated at 535 years. The beech listing spans seven Italian regions, Abruzzo and Lazio among them, but none of its components falls in the park's Molise side.

That detail leaves Molise one of only two Italian regions with no World Heritage site at all, even though part of this park lies within it. More in [the two regions with no UNESCO site](/stories/the-two-regions-with-no-unesco-site) and [Abruzzo](/regions/abruzzo).

## FAQ

### How many bears are in the Abruzzo national park?

Around 50 Marsican brown bears, within a range of 45 to 69, on the park authority's estimate. It's the largest bear group in Italy and lives almost entirely inside the park; the authority gives no year for the figure.

### Where can you see Marsican bears?

Almost only in and around the Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise National Park, where nearly the whole population of around 50 lives. The park's visitor rules and capped areas are not among the facts verified here, so read them with the park authority before you go.

### How big is the Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise National Park?

Around 50,500 hectares, with a contiguous area of 77,500 hectares more, across 24 comuni in Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise. Its highest summit is Monte Petroso at 2,249 meters, and the headquarters are in Pescasseroli.

### Is the Abruzzo national park a UNESCO site?

Partly. Val Cervara, home to the park's oldest beech, is one of 13 Italian components of the UNESCO ancient beech forests, listed across seven regions. None of those components falls in the park's Molise section.

## Sources

| Fact | Source | Confidence | Valid until |
|---|---|---|---|
| Il Parco Nazionale d'Abruzzo, Lazio e Molise nasce nel 1922 per iniziativa privata ed e' istituito per legge nel 1923 con il Regio Decreto-Legge n. 257: si estende su circa 50.500 ettari con un'area contigua di altri 77.500 ettari e comprende 24 comuni di tre regioni. | [Ente Parco Nazionale d'Abruzzo, Lazio e Molise](https://www.parcoabruzzo.it/pagina.php?id=546) | medium | 2029-12-31 |
| L'Ente Parco Nazionale d'Abruzzo, Lazio e Molise stima la popolazione di orso bruno marsicano in circa 50 esemplari, con un intervallo tra 45 e 69: e' il nucleo di orsi piu' numeroso d'Italia ed e' quasi interamente compreso nel Parco. | [Ente Parco Nazionale d'Abruzzo, Lazio e Molise](https://www.parcoabruzzo.it/pagina.php?id=106) | medium | 2027-12-31 |
| Le componenti italiane delle Antiche faggete primordiali dei Carpazi e di altre regioni d'Europa ricadono in 7 regioni: Abruzzo, Basilicata, Calabria, Emilia-Romagna, Lazio, Puglia, Toscana | [Ministero della Cultura - Ufficio UNESCO](https://unesco.cultura.gov.it/projects/); [Commissione Nazionale Italiana per l'UNESCO](https://www.unesco.it/it/unesco-vicino-a-te/siti-patrimonio-mondiale/antiche-faggete-primordiali-dei-carpazi-e-di-altre-regioni-deuropa-sito-transnazionale-in-italia-13-faggete/); [UNESCO World Heritage Centre](https://whc.unesco.org/en/statesparties/it/) | medium | 2027-08-31 |
| Molise e Valle d'Aosta sono le uniche due regioni italiane senza alcun sito UNESCO del Patrimonio Mondiale (2026) | [UNESCO World Heritage Centre](https://whc.unesco.org/en/statesparties/it/); [Ministero della Cultura - Ufficio UNESCO](https://unesco.cultura.gov.it/projects/); [Wikidata (query SPARQL su P1435=Q9259, P17=Q38, P757, P131)](https://query.wikidata.org/sparql) | medium | 2027-08-31 |

## Image

https://media.myitalia.it/media/nature.pnalm.v2.1600.jpg
Author: gian luca bucci. License: CC BY 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0).
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Parco_Nazionale_d%27Abruzzo,_Lazio_e_Molise_-_panoramio_(7).jpg

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