Niepołomice Forest ( pl, Puszcza Niepołomicka) is a large

forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

complex in western part of

Sandomierz Basin Sandomierz Basin ( pl, Kotlina Sandomierska) is a lowland, located in southeastern Poland, between the Lesser Poland Upland, Lublin Upland and the Western Carpathians. Its name comes from the historical city of Sandomierz, and the basin has a trian ...

, about east of

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

(center).Polish Journal of Environmental Studies
Niepołomice Forest (Southern Poland): Changes during 30 Years
Vol. 12, No. 2 (2003), 239-244 ''(PDF file)''. It is made up of a few protected areas which used to constitute a single virgin forest originally. Niepołomice Forest occupies an area between

Vistula The Vistula (; pl, Wisła, ) is the longest river in Poland and the ninth-longest river in Europe, at in length. The drainage basin, reaching into three other nations, covers , of which is in Poland. The Vistula rises at Barania Góra in ...

and Raba rivers. The main complex covers about . It is situated between the towns of

Niepołomice Niepołomice (pronounced ; ) is a town in southern Poland, within the Lesser Poland Voivodeship (since 1999). It is situated on the Vistula River, on the verge of the large virgin Niepołomice Forest. There is a 14th-century hunting castle ...

, Baczków, Krzyżanowice and Mikluszowice. The name ''Niepołomice'' derives from the ''

Old Polish language The Old Polish language ( pl, język staropolski, staropolszczyzna) was a period in the history of the Polish language between the 10th and the 16th centuries. It was followed by the Middle Polish language. The sources for the study of the Ol ...

'' word ''niepołomny'' which meant "impassable", or "impossible to destroy" or conquer.

Description

The forest consists of six

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 ...

s with the total area of 94.43

hectare The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100- metre sides (1 hm2), or 10,000 m2, and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. An acre is ...

s. The biggest reserve called Gibiel (29.79 ha), covers the area with the most diverse flora and fauna, featuring 175 species of birds as well as

European bison The European bison (''Bison bonasus'') or the European wood bison, also known as the wisent ( or ), the zubr (), or sometimes colloquially as the European buffalo, is a European species of bison. It is one of two extant species of bison, along ...

deer Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the re ...

wild boar The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The species is ...

wolve The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the gray wolf or grey wolf, is a large canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, and gray wolves, as popularly un ...

s, lynx, and wild cats.Puszcza Niepołomicka. Charakterystyka obszaru
at Polska.pl The next reserve called Lipówka (25.73 ha) features 200-year-old

nature monument A natural monument is a natural or natural/cultural feature of outstanding or unique value because of its inherent rarity, representative of aesthetic qualities or cultural significance. Under World Commission on Protected Areas guidelines, nat ...

s mainly lime trees, oaks and

hornbeam Hornbeams are hardwood trees in the flowering plant genus ''Carpinus'' in the birch family Betulaceae. The 30–40 species occur across much of the temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. Origin of names The common English name ''hornbeam ...

s. Slightly smaller Długosz Królewski Reserve, with an area of 24.14 ha (not far from the village of Stanisławice) was established for the protection of a rare flowering

fern A fern (Polypodiopsida or Polypodiophyta ) is a member of a group of vascular plants (plants with xylem and phloem) that reproduce via spores and have neither seeds nor flowers. The polypodiophytes include all living pteridophytes exce ...

named ''

Osmunda regalis ''Osmunda regalis'', or royal fern, is a species of deciduous fern, native to Europe, Africa and Asia, growing in woodland bogs and on the banks of streams. The species is sometimes known as flowering fern due to the appearance of its fertile fro ...

'' ( pl, Długosz Królewski). Reserve called Dębina (12.66 ha) is set up for the preservation of ancient oak trees. Koło Reserve, with a smaller area of 3.49 ha consists of age-old lime trees and hornbeams. The reserve called Wiślisko Kobyle (6.67 ha) is devoted to water plants. In the heart of Niepołomice Forest is the most protected area inhabited by the Polish

wisent The European bison (''Bison bonasus'') or the European wood bison, also known as the wisent ( or ), the zubr (), or sometimes colloquially as the European buffalo, is a European species of bison. It is one of two extant species of bison, along ...

(''Żubr''), the heaviest surviving land animal in Europe.

History

Because of its close proximity to Kraków, then the capital of Poland, Niepołomice Forest was the most popular hunting ground for the

Polish royalty Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...

beginning in the 13th century. In its vicinity, King Casimir III the Great built the Royal hunting Castle, later rebuilt by Sigismund I the Old and fitted with the Queen Bona Sforza's gardens. The first official mention of the Niepołomice Forest comes from a document written in 1242, calling it "Kłaj". In 1393, the forest is mentioned as ''Niepołomice Woods'' (Las Niepołomicki), and in 1441 – for the first time, it was written about under its current name. Throughout its entire history, the forest was owned by the state – by the Polish kings between 13th and 18th centuries until the military partitions of Poland, and after liberation, by the sovereign state of Poland.J.Paprota
Puszcza Niepołomicka (The Niepołomice Forest).
History. Long horned european wild ox

The early road leading through the forest was called the Royal Road (''see also: the Royal Road of Kraków'' terminating at the

Wawel Castle The Wawel Royal Castle (; ''Zamek Królewski na Wawelu'') and the Wawel Hill on which it sits constitute the most historically and culturally significant site in Poland. A fortified residency on the Vistula River in Kraków, it was established o ...

in the heart of the city). It was traveled by prominent Polish kings hunting for bear, the aurochs (extinct since 1627, ''pictured''), wisent, and other big game. The forest was a source of major wood construction material. It was looked after by foresters and Masters of the Royal Hunt. During the military partitions of Poland, from 1795 on, the Austro-Hungarian Empire (controlling the province for well over a century) destroyed most of the old-growth forest and replanted that area with fast growing pine trees meant for commerce. Even more thorough destruction of what remained of Niepołomice Forest came about during the

Nazi German Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

occupation of Poland Occupation commonly refers to: * Occupation (human activity), or job, one's role in society, often a regular activity performed for payment *Occupation (protest), political demonstration by holding public or symbolic spaces *Military occupation, t ...

between 1939 and 1945. The trees were cut indiscriminately and shipped to military bases and battle fronts across Europe. War crimes were being committed in the area by the Nazis, with Poles and Jews from the neighbouring towns of

Bochnia Bochnia (german: Salzberg) is a town on the river Raba in southern Poland. The town lies approximately halfway between Tarnów (east) and the regional capital Kraków (west). Bochnia is most noted for its salt mine, the oldest functioning i ...

and

murdered deep in the woods. There are numerous mass graves in the forest including those of Polish soldiers from 156 Infantry Regiment of Army Kraków, killed on September 9, 1939, as well as those of local partisans who died before the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. Among the 40 hostages executed there on December 11, 1942, was the heroic President of Kraków, Dr Stanisław Klimecki. At present, the forest is maintained according to modern forestry practices. Very old trees are generally rare. The program of reconstruction began in postwar Poland around the mid 20th century, including the reinstatement of native plants in drawn-out areas.

Tourism

The forest is transversed by several walking trails including a bicycle trail and the newly open

educational trail An educational trail (or sometimes educational path), nature trail or nature walk is a specially developed hiking trail or footpath that runs through the countryside, along which there are marked stations or stops next to points of natural, techn ...

complete with informational placards about the local

flora Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous (ecology), indigenous) native plant, native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' ...

and

fauna Fauna is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is ''flora'', and for fungi, it is ''funga''. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively referred to as ''Biota (ecology ...

. Among the trails which lead deep into the forest, there is the Niepołomice – Poszyna (green) trail called the Royal Road, and the two trails each , Grodkowice – Błoto – Sitowiec, and the Podłęże – Przyborów – Sitowiec (blue) trail leading to mass graves of Poles and Jews from World War II. There is also the Stanisławice (red) trail leading toward the perimeter of the wisent reserve; however, the reserve is not accessible to visitors.Bogusław Młynarczyk, ''Biuletyn Informacji Publicznej'', Regionalna Dyrekcja Lasów Państwowych w Krakowie, Nadleśnictwo Niepołomice
Zachowawczy Ośrodek Hodowli Żubra ''(Wisent reserve)''
an
Szlaki turystyczne ''(The trails)''
/ref> All trails are designed and maintained by the Forestry Inspectorate of Niepołomice. Virginia Wąsikowska

(''Trails, including public transport'')

References

* Leszek Bartkowicz
"Potencjalne konsekwencje hodowlane spontanicznego różnicowania strukturyw drzewostanach „borowego” kompleksu Puszczy Niepołomickiej"
Forest Research Papers, 2008, Vol. 69 (1): 41–47. * Wojciech Chełmicki, Stanisław Ciszewski, Mirosław Żelazny
"Reconstructing ground-water level fluctuations in 20th century Niepołomice Forest"
ERB and Northern European FRIEND Project 5 Conference, Demänovská dolina, Slovakia, 2002 * Pawel Kapusta, Grazyna Szarek-Lukaszewska, Józef Kiszka
"Spatial analysis of lichen species richness in Niepolomice Forest"
The Lichenologist (2004), 36:249-260 Cambridge University Press * Stanisław Orzeł, Agricultural University of Cracow

Electronic Journal of Polish Agricultural Universities, 2007, Volume 10, Issue 2. {{DEFAULTSORT:Niepolomice Forest Forests of Poland Geography of Lesser Poland Voivodeship Parks in Lesser Poland Voivodeship Natura 2000 in Poland Holocaust locations in Poland

Description

History

Tourism

See also

References