Yalta State Mountain Forest Reserve is located on the southern macro-slope of the Main Ridge of the Crimean Mountains. It is located above the anciently developed strip of the Southern coast of Crimea, where now there is a group of resorts called Big Yalta.
The rapid development of sanatoriums, vacation homes on the South Coast, and especially in the area of Yalta, sharply increased recreational pressure on the forests required measures to protect the mountain forests here. In 1939, the Crimean Resort Park was organized, which covered the area of Big Yalta with a green necklace.
In February 1973 the Yalta State Mountain Forest Reserve was founded. It includes four protected forestry areas: Opolznevskoye, Alupka, Livadia and Gurzufskoye. The total area of the reserve is 14,589 hectares.
The territory of the reserve is a strip stretching along the Black Sea coast from west to east (from Foros to Krasnokamenka) for 40 km. Most of it is above 350 meters above sea level and only in some places narrow tongues descend to the sea itself. The maximum absolute mark of the Reserve’s territory is 1320 meters.
The relief of the reserve is mountainous, strongly indented by numerous deep ravines, canyon-like valleys of small rivers. In the lower part of the ridge, which is called the South Coast of Crimea and has a width of up to 6-8 km, slopes of steepness of about 10° and leveled areas prevail; in the middle and upper part of the ridge — steeper slopes — 30-40°, often precipitous rocks.
In the area of Foros — Alupka and Yalta cliffs reach almost 500 meters and stretch continuous line, interrupted in some places more gentle slopes. 
The top of the Main Ridge in the area of the reserve — Aypetrinskaya yaila — is a hilly plateau with a width from several hundred meters to 5-7 km with numerous karst sinkholes, hollows, saucer-shaped depressions and ridges crossing the plateau in the northeastern direction with a relative height of 20-50 meters. Karst sinkholes sometimes reach 200-250 m depth.
The piles called «chaos», created as a result of earthquakes and rockslides, bizarre rock formations, among which Tarakh-Tash and Stavri-Kaya rocks, declared natural monuments, stand out with their fantastic figures.
The climate of the reserve varies greatly depending on the altitude above sea level. The southern coast of Crimea is characterized by the warmest sub-Mediterranean climate in the republic.
The water resources of the Reserve are represented by small mountain rivers and many underground springs. Many rivers in dry years dry up and do not bring their water to the sea. The length of most of them is 7-10 km and the catchment area is 10-45 km2. The rivers have a rather steep fall, so during heavy rains they flow with great speed and often cause damage to cultural plantings on the South Coast.
The main role in providing the South Coast of Crimea with drinking water belongs not to rivers, but to underground springs, which have a significant flow rate. Many springs come to the surface at heights of 400-500 meters. The main forests of the Reserve, which play an important role in water protection, are located in this area.
Within the Yalta Reserve the natural conditions are extremely diverse and change literally for several tens of meters. Therefore, with a significant range of these changes from the coast with its dry and warm frost-free climate to the top of the Main Crimean ridge with wet and cool conditions is possible to grow on a small area of coniferous and deciduous forests, steppe, meadow and petrophytic vegetation.
The major part of the Reserve (20%) is covered with forests, among which the first place in terms of area (35%) is occupied by forests of Crimean pine, which create special, unique landscapes. A significant area (17%) is covered with forests of downy oak. Plots of other species are usually interspersed in these continuous forests.
The flora of the Yalta Reserve is characterized by great diversity. The flora of the Reserve counts 1363 species of vascular plants belonging to 509 genera and 100 families, which is 65% of species, 80% of genera and 95% of families of the flora of the Mountain Crimea (Shelyag-Sosonko, Didukh, 1980). The leading families in terms of the number of species are the families of Complexaceae, Legumes, Cereals, Cruciferous, Rosaceae, Hubosperaceae, Umbelliferous, Norichnaceae, Carnaceae and Borageaceae. Most of the flora is composed of Mediterranean species.
A characteristic feature of the Reserve’s flora is the growth of a number of evergreen species (small-fruited strawberry, Crimean frankincense, Pontic needlewort), as well as summer-green plants (Biberstein’s argyrolobium, pterocephalus pinnatum, broad-leaved crucifera, asterolinum stellate, Crimean eaglewort, Securigera mecheviformis, one-trunked horseshoe).
The diversity of the fauna of the Yalta Reserve is largely due to the presence of four vegetation belts on its territory. This created, in particular, a favorable situation for mountain-forest species. At the same time, the vertebrate fauna of the Reserve is relatively poor, which is characteristic of the entire Crimean peninsula due to its geographical isolation.
In the Reserve there are 37 species of mammals (72% of the total species composition of the theriofauna of the Crimea — shrews, bats, russak hare, Altai squirrel, fox, badger, weasel, red deer, roe deer, pig, mouflon, etc.); 150 species of birds (50% of the species composition of the theriofauna of the Crimea — shrews, bats, russak hare, Altai squirrel, fox, badger, weasel, red deer, roe deer, pig, mouflon, etc.).); 150 species of birds (50% of the bird fauna of the peninsula — chaffinch, warbler, black tit, mottled woodpecker, blackbird, wren, field lark, forest pipit, pheasant, puffin, puffin, eagle, eagle, golden eagle, owls, etc.); 10 species of reptiles (10 species of reptiles, eagles, owls, etc.).); 10 species of reptiles (66.6% of the herpetofauna species composition — lizards, stripe, urchin, honey badger and turtle) and 4 species of amphibians (75% of the total batrachofauna of Crimea).
The landscapes, flora and fauna of the Yalta State Mountain Forest Reserve reflect all the main natural features peculiar to the southern slope of the Main Crimean Ridge. As a benchmark of the region, the reserve is extremely important from evolutionary, ecological, economic and social points of view.