Estetal (nature reserve)

	Estetal
	Este near Kakenstorf
location	Southwest of Hamburg , Harburg district , Lower Saxony
surface	685 ha
Identifier	NSG LÜ 358
Geographical location	53 ° 20 ' N , 9 ° 44' E Coordinates: 53 ° 20 '24 " N , 9 ° 43' 30" E
Setup date	February 1, 2020
administration	NLWKN

The Estetal is a nature reserve in the Lower Saxon communities of Welle , Tostedt , Kakenstorf and Dohren in the Samtgemeinde Tostedt , Drestedt , Wenzendorf , Hollenstedt , Appel , Moisburg and Regesbostel in the Samtgemeinde Hollenstedt and the city of Buchholz in the Nordheide in the Harburg district .

General

The nature reserve, which consists of two parts and is designated NSG LÜ 358, is around 685 hectares in size. It is completely part of the FFH area "Este, Bötersheimer Heide, Glüsinger Bruch and Osterbruch". To the north it borders on the nature reserve " Unteres Estetal " in the district of Stade , east of Tostedt on a small scale on the nature reserve " Glüsinger Bruch and Osterbruch ". Between the federal highway 75 north-east of Tostedt and Moisburg, it is often surrounded by the "Estetal and surroundings" conservation area. The two parts of the nature reserve are connected to each other in Hollenstedt by part of the "Estetal" nature reserve. In the south, the nature reserve borders on another part of the approximately 215 hectare nature reserve "Estetal", which consists of two parts. The landscape protection area "Estetal and surroundings" has merged into the scope of the nature protection and landscape protection ordinance in the nature protection and landscape protection area "Estetal". The "Estetal" nature reserve and landscape conservation area were designated as of February 1, 2020. The responsible lower nature conservation authority is the district of Harburg.

description

The nature reserve is located southwest of Hamburg . It extends along the Este valley and partially includes areas adjacent to it, including the lower reaches of several streams flowing into the Este and parts of the Seggerheide between Tostedt and Hollenstedt. The Este partially flows through grassland areas and wooded areas. Below Hollenstedt there are grassland areas, whereby the Este is partly accompanied by woody stands.

The grasslands are often characterized as wet grassland used extensively as hay meadows . These include areas with poor grass and species-rich grasslands . The grasslands are partly divided by hedges and bushes, alongside field or solitary trees . Reeds and reeds as well as moist tall herbaceous corridors are formed on unused areas .

The forests are characterized as alder-ash and alder quarry forests and as moist oak-hornbeam forests . The dominant tree species in the alder and ash forests are black alder and common ash . Broken willow , English oak , bird cherry , bird cherry , hornbeam , red beech and white elm are also found . The oak-hornbeam forests are made up of pedunculate oak, hornbeam, common ash, winter lime , field maple , red beech, bird cherry, bird cherry, sessile oak and white elm. At the edge of the valley, mixed oak forests grow in places. Main tree species are English oak, sessile oak, silver birch , downy birch and Scots pine . This is mainly followed by hornbeam and red beech. Small areas of beech forests with red beech, hornbeam, English oak and sessile oak can also be found near Bötersheim and Mühlenbach . Moor forests of downy birch and pine as well as silver birch, rowanberry and sometimes black alder also grow on marshland. The forests generally have a high proportion of old and dead wood .

In places, heather areas are pronounced. On dry sites settle heather and crowberry , partly associated with blueberries or cranberry . In some cases, stocks of juniper and English or hairy gorse are interspersed. On moist to swampy locations settle cross-leaved heath , heather, beak-sedge, marsh gentian , bog lily and peat moss and sedge and cotton grass Riede.

The flowing waters are close to nature, with predominantly unspoilt banks and diverse sedimentary structures. Flooding underwater vegetation can be found in sunny areas of the flowing waters, in particular of Este and Mühlenbach. In places, oxbow lakes and backwaters separated from the watercourse can be found. In the nature reserve there are also still waters that are predominantly near-natural with well-developed water and silting vegetation. Laichweed and frog-bite communities, for example, settle here.

The flowing waters are habitat and a. various fish such as brown and sea trout , hazel , chub , gudgeon and brook loach and the round- mouthed sea , river and river lamprey as well as for otters and green mermaids . The still waters are home to various amphibians , including great crested newt and common toad . The fire salamander is native to a spring swamp near Bötersheim .

The nature reserve is partly home to endangered plant species, including knotty grass lily , spiked speedwell , low salsify , salsify and spring sedge . In the area of heathland near Bötersheim there are occurrences of the flax-less flax leaf , of which only four locations are known nationwide.

The nature reserve is crossed by the Wanne-Eickel – Hamburg railway line , federal highway 75 and Autobahn 1 , among others .

Web links

"Estetal" nature reserve in the database of the Lower Saxony State Office for Water Management, Coastal and Nature Conservation (NLWKN)
Nature and landscape protection area "Estetal" , Harburg district