Nīcgale forest is

Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...

protected landscape IUCN protected area categories, or IUCN protected area management categories, are categories used to classify protected areas in a system developed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The enlisting of such areas is part ...

area in the

Latgale Latgale (; ; ; ; ; ; Belarusian Latin alphabet, Belarusian Latin: ''Łathalija''; ), also known as Latgalia or Latgallia, is one of the Historical Latvian Lands. It is the easternmost region of the country and lies north of the Daugava River. Wh ...

region, in the

Nīcgale Parish Nīcgale (; ) is a settlement in Nīcgale Parish, Augšdaugava Municipality in the Latgale region of Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic st ...

Augšdaugava Municipality Augšdaugava Municipality (, "upper Daugava municipality") is one of the 35 municipalities established in Latvia in 2021. It surrounds the independent city of Daugavpils and its municipal headquarters are located there. Its first elected municipa ...

, east of Nīcgale. At the eastern point of the territory is Nicgale Great Stone. The site contains EU Habitats Directive habitats - old or natural

boreal forest Taiga or tayga ( ; , ), also known as boreal forest or snow forest, is a biome characterized by pinophyta, coniferous forests consisting mostly of pines, spruces, and larches. The taiga, or boreal forest, is the world's largest land biome. I ...

s, old mixed

broadleaf forest A forest is an ecosystem characterized by a dense community of 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 functio ...

s, walking forests. This is the ''

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, respectiv ...

'' area.

Flora

A large number of protected plant species are found here, including

ramsons ''Allium ursinum'', known as wild garlic, ramsons, cowleekes, cows's leek, cowleek, buckrams, broad-leaved garlic, wood garlic, bear leek, Eurasian wild garlic or bear's garlic, is a bulbous perennial flowering plant in the amaryllis family, Ama ...

(''

Allium ursinum ''Allium ursinum'', known as wild garlic, ramsons, cowleekes, cows's leek, cowleek, buckrams, broad-leaved garlic, wood garlic, bear leek, Eurasian wild garlic or bear's garlic, is a bulbous perennial flowering plant in the amaryllis family, Ama ...

''), clustered bur-reed ('' Sparganium glomeratum''), downy buttercup ('' Ranunculus lanuginosus''),''Ranunculus lanuginosus'' (Downy Buttercup)
/ref> Lyon's notchwort ('). One of the species of flowering plants - hairy agrimony (''

Agrimonia pilosa ''Agrimonia pilosa'' also known as hairy agrimony, is a flowering plant in the family Rosaceae. It is distributed primarily over the Korean Peninsula, Japan, China, Siberia, and Eastern Europe. Description ''Agrimonia pilosa'' is a perennial ...

'') is protected under EU Nature directives.

Fauna

Nīcgales forest is home to a significant number of butterfly species, including

marsh fritillary The marsh fritillary (''Euphydryas aurinia'') is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae. Commonly distributed in the Palearctic region, the marsh fritillary's common name derives from one of its several habitats, marshland. The prolonged larval st ...

(''

Euphydryas aurinia The marsh fritillary (''Euphydryas aurinia'') is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae. Commonly distributed in the Palearctic realm, Palearctic region, the marsh fritillary's common name derives from one of its several habitats, marshland. The p ...

''), Scarce fritillary ('' Euphydryas maturna'', (''

Lycaena dispar The large copper (''Lycaena dispar'') is a butterfly of the family Lycaenidae. ''L. dispar'' has been commonly arranged into three subspecies: ''L. dispar dispar'', (single-brooded) which was commonly found in England, but is now extinct, ''L. d ...

''), scarce heath ('' Coenonympha hero''), woodland brown ('' Lopinga achine''), blue underwing ('' Catocala fraxini''), Pericallia (''

Pericallia matronula ''Arctia matronula'' is species of tiger moth in the family Erebidae. It was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae''. It can be found in central and eastern Europe, Kazakhstan, southern Siberia, northern ...

''). Protected fauna species include

white-backed woodpecker The white-backed woodpecker (''Dendrocopos leucotos'') is a Eurasian woodpecker belonging to the genus ''Dendrocopos''. Taxonomy The white-backed woodpecker was described by the German naturalist Johann Matthäus Bechstein in 1802 under the b ...

('' Picoides leucotos''),

middle spotted woodpecker The middle spotted woodpecker (''Dendrocoptes medius'') is a European woodpecker belonging to the genus ''Dendrocoptes''. Taxonomy The middle spotted woodpecker was Species description, formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeu ...

('' Leiopicus medius''),

Ural owl The Ural owl (''Strix uralensis'') is a large nocturnal owl. It is a member of the true owl family, ''Strigidae''. The Ural owl is a member of the genus ''Strix (genus), Strix'', that is also the origin of the family's name under Linnaean taxonom ...

('' Strix uralensis''),

Eurasian pygmy owl The Eurasian pygmy owl (''Glaucidium passerinum'') is the smallest owl in Europe. It is a dark reddish to greyish-brown, with spotted sides and half of a white ring around the back of the neck. This species is found in the boreal forests of North ...

('' Glaucidium passerinum'').Nature Protection Board. Nicgale Forests
/ref> In total : *17 species of birds are protected under EU Nature directives. *3 species of invertebrates are protected under EU Nature directives.

References

Natura 2000 in Latvia Nature parks in Latvia Augšdaugava Municipality Latgale {{Europe-protected-area-stub