Nature conservation - Safety for animals and plants: protected area expanded
A home for rare bats, butterflies and orchids: A nature reserve in the district of Saalfeld-Rudolstadt that has existed for decades has been expanded and redesigned. The "Greifenstein" area now bears the name "Greifenstein and eastern Gölitzwände", the State Office for the Environment, Mining and Nature Conservation (TLUBN) announced on Monday. Now, 122 hectares of animals and plants will be protected by a special status instead of the previous 60 hectares. This increases the area of the site from around 84 to around 170 soccer pitches.
Previously, the area covered forests and meadows around Greifenstein Castle and the forestry village of Kessel near Bad Blankenburg. The castle complex is no longer part of the protected area with the new layout. The adjacent Gölitzwände up to Kleingölitz have been added. Hiking trails, such as the Fröbelwanderweg, lead through the area, which is part of the "Natura 2000" network of protected areas. The aim of this network is to protect endangered native plant and animal species in the European Union.
The Gölitzwände are a shell limestone rock face with adjacent dry and warm meadows and forests, it was said. According to TLUBN, many rare animal and plant species have their habitat there. These include the eagle owl, bat and butterfly species as well as beetles and orchids.
As a nature reserve, the area is largely left to its own devices and may not be farmed. One part of the forest is to become a kind of primeval forest. "Extensive use is still possible on the remaining forest areas," it said.
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Source: www.stern.de
