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Leipzig Riverside Forest (German: ''Leipziger Auenwald'') is one of the largest lowland
Leipzig Riverside Forest is divided into separate southern and northern parts, between which is a corridor containing many parks and green areas along the banks of the
Leipzig Riverside Forest (German: ''Leipziger Auenwald'') is one of the largest lowland Riparian forest
A riparian forest or riparian woodland is a forested or wooded area of land adjacent to a body of water such as a river, stream, pond, lake, marshland, estuary, canal, sink or reservoir.
Etymology
The term riparian comes from the Latin word '' ...
s in Central Europe
Central Europe is an area of Europe between Western Europe and Eastern Europe, based on a common historical, social and cultural identity. The Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) between Catholicism and Protestantism significantly shaped the area' ...
, which lies mostly within the city limits of Leipzig
Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as wel ...
city in Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
. The natural reserve is partially covered with hardwood forest and contains a large variety of endangered species.
Location
Leipzig Riverside Forest is divided into separate southern and northern parts, between which is a corridor containing many parks and green areas along the banks of the White Elster
The White Elster
Accessed on 16 Jan 2011. (, ) is a long river in central
Accessed on 16 Jan 2011. (, ) is a long river in central
Elster Basin, which was constructed to provide
Leipzig Municipal Forest
on the City of Leipzig website
Auwald Leipzig
– Website of Society for Environmental Education and Research
Private website
– with information about the history, extent, soil and climate of the forest {{coord, 51.31719, 12.3565364, region:DE-SN_type:forest, display=title Forests and woodlands of Saxony Geography of Leipzig
flood protection
Flood control methods are used to reduce or prevent the detrimental effects of flood waters."Flood Control", MSN Encarta, 2008 (see below: Further reading). Flood relief methods are used to reduce the effects of flood waters or high water levels ...
, and Elster flood plain. The total area covered is approx. 2500 hectares.
Leipzig Riverside Forest is a nature reserve
A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...
.
Flora and Fauna
Plants
Originally, the hardwood forest hosted moreelm
Elms are deciduous and semi-deciduous trees comprising the flowering plant genus ''Ulmus'' in the plant family Ulmaceae. They are distributed over most of the Northern Hemisphere, inhabiting the temperate and tropical-montane regions of North ...
s and black poplars which have become rare over the years, however the amount of old oaks with massive stems is still remarkable. The mixed forest contains may different tree species, almost half of them are either ash
Ash or ashes are the solid remnants of fires. Specifically, ''ash'' refers to all non-aqueous, non- gaseous residues that remain after something burns. In analytical chemistry, to analyse the mineral and metal content of chemical samples, ash ...
, maple
''Acer'' () is a genus of trees and shrubs commonly known as maples. The genus is placed in the family Sapindaceae.Stevens, P. F. (2001 onwards). Angiosperm Phylogeny Website. Version 9, June 2008 nd more or less continuously updated since http ...
or sycamore maple
''Acer pseudoplatanus'', known as the sycamore in the British Isles and as the sycamore maple in the United States, is a species of flowering plant in the soapberry and lychee family Sapindaceae. It is a large deciduous, broad-leaved tree, tol ...
. Also found are small-leaved linden, common horn beam and
various kinds of willow
Willows, also called sallows and osiers, from the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 400 speciesMabberley, D.J. 1997. The Plant Book, Cambridge University Press #2: Cambridge. of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist s ...
s.
In spring, the ground is covered with wild garlic Plant species in the genus ''Allium'' known as wild garlic include the following:
*''Allium canadense'', wild onion
*'' Allium carinatum'', keeled garlic
*'' Allium drummondii'', Drummond's onion
*''Allium ochotense'', Siberian onion
*'' Allium ole ...
, sprinkled with spring snowflakes and crested lark
The crested lark (''Galerida cristata'') is a species of lark widespread across Eurasia and northern Africa. It is a non-migratory bird, but can occasionally be found as a vagrant in Great Britain.
Taxonomy and systematics
The crested lark was ...
in colors ranging from white and pink to purple. Some rather rare plants like the Geum rivale
''Geum rivale'', the water avens, is a flowering plant in the genus ''Geum'' within the family Rosaceae. Other names for the plant are nodding avens, drooping avens, cure-all, water flower and Indian chocolate. It is native to the temperate regi ...
can also be found in the wet, almost swampy parts of the area.
Animals
Thecommon kingfisher
The common kingfisher (''Alcedo atthis''), also known as the Eurasian kingfisher and river kingfisher, is a small kingfisher with seven subspecies recognized within its wide distribution across Eurasia and North Africa. It is resident in much of ...
has become quite rare in Germany, especially due to loss of habitat. Kingfishers rely on clean, flowing water with a multitude of small fish and breeding sites in the riverside forest. They are still considered to be endangered, and so enjoy special protection, as a result, some waterways are closed-off from tourist paddling during the breeding season.
Inhabiting the forest are red squirrel
The red squirrel (''Sciurus vulgaris'') is a species of tree squirrel in the genus ''Sciurus'' common throughout Europe and Asia. The red squirrel is an arboreal, primarily herbivorous rodent.
In Great Britain, Ireland, and in Italy numbers ...
s and a multitude of woodpecker
Woodpeckers are part of the bird family Picidae, which also includes the piculets, wrynecks, and sapsuckers. Members of this family are found worldwide, except for Australia, New Guinea, New Zealand, Madagascar, and the extreme polar regions. ...
s, such as the great spotted woodpecker, as well as the black woodpecker and the European green woodpecker
The European green woodpecker (''Picus viridis'') is a large green woodpecker with a bright red crown and a black moustache. Males have a red centre to the moustache stripe which is absent in females. It is resident across much of Europe and the ...
.
Literature
* ENEDAS e. V./ Autorenkollektiv: ''Der Leipziger Auwald. Ein Natur- und Erlebnisführer.''Edition Leipzig
Edition Leipzig was a publisher in the German Democratic Republic (GDR/DDR), which, for the most part, placed books on Western markets as an export publisher. This was intended to serve representative purposes as well as to procure foreign curr ...
, 2013, .
* Gerd K. Müller (ed.): ''Der Leipziger Auwald – ein verkanntes Juwel der Natur.'' Leipzig, 1992.
* Gerd K. Müller: ''Die Leipziger Auen.'' Staatsministerium für Umwelt und Landesentwicklung, Dresden, 1995.
References
External links
Leipzig Municipal Forest
on the City of Leipzig website
Auwald Leipzig
– Website of Society for Environmental Education and Research
Private website
– with information about the history, extent, soil and climate of the forest {{coord, 51.31719, 12.3565364, region:DE-SN_type:forest, display=title Forests and woodlands of Saxony Geography of Leipzig