Silkeborg Forests is

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

’s largest forest. It comprises a collection of several independent private and public woodlands, that have been allowed to merge into a single connected forest south of the city of

Silkeborg Silkeborg () is a Danish town with a population of 49,747 (1 January 2022).Rold Skov Rold Skov (Rold Forest) is a forest in Himmerland, Denmark. At 8,000 ha, it is the second largest forest in the country, after the Silkeborg Forests.

, and it is located within the largest forest district in the country as well. The forests forms an important part of the larger regional landscape known as

Søhøjlandet Søhøjlandet (English: ''The Lake-highland'') is the highest lying region in Denmark and at the same time, it has the highest density of lakes.Silkeborg Silkeborg () is a Danish town with a population of 49,747 (1 January 2022).Natura 2000 Natura 2000 is a network of nature protection areas in the territory of the European Union. It is made up of Special Areas of Conservation and Special Protection Areas designated under the Habitats Directive and the Birds Directive, respectively ...

and is designated as area 57 and EU Habitat area H181. The protection comprises several conservationally important forest and aquatic

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

s. Amongst these, habitat type 9120 defined as "Beech forests (''

Fagus sylvatica ''Fagus sylvatica'', the European beech or common beech is a deciduous tree belonging to the beech family Fagaceae. Description ''Fagus sylvatica'' is a large tree, capable of reaching heights of up to tall and trunk diameter, though mor ...

'') with holly (''

Ilex ''Ilex'' (), or holly, is a genus of over 570 species of flowering plants in the family (biology), family Aquifoliaceae, and the only living genus in that family. ''Ilex'' has the most species of any woody dioecious angiosperm genus. The speci ...

''), growing on acidic soils, in a humid Atlantic climate", is the most prevalent forest habitat at 351 ha, while habitat type 3150, defined as "Natural eutrophic lakes with ''Magnopotamion'' or ''Hydrocharition''-type vegetation" is the most prevalent aquatic habitat in the area, at 188 ha. There are other important - but less extent - habitat types present, like the 54 ha Lobelian lake of Almind Sø for example. The designation is also based on the presence of

European brook lamprey The brook lamprey (''Lampetra planeri'', also known as the European brook lamprey and the western brook lamprey) is a small European lamprey species that exclusively inhabits freshwater environments. The species is related to, but distinct from, ...

Northern crested newt The northern crested newt, great crested newt or warty newt (''Triturus cristatus'') is a newt species native to Great Britain, northern and central continental Europe and parts of Western Siberia. It is a large newt, with females growing up to ...

Pond bat The pond bat (''Myotis dasycneme'') is a species of vesper bat. It is found in Eurasia from France to Russia and Kazakhstan. Physical characteristics The bat is medium-sized, with a noticeably short tragus for a species in the genus ''Myotis''. ...

and the

European otter The Eurasian otter (''Lutra lutra''), also known as the European otter, Eurasian river otter, common otter, and Old World otter, is a semiaquatic mammal native to Eurasia. The most widely distributed member of the otter subfamily (Lutrinae) of th ...

living here.

References and notes

External links

{{commonscat, Silkeborgskovene, Silkeborg Forests Silkeborg Municipality Forests of Denmark Special Areas of Conservation in Denmark