Limestone grasslands and Diemelaltwasser near Lamerden
Lean lime grassland and Diemelaltwasser near Lamerden is a nature reserve near the village of Lamerden in the Diemeltal, in the district of Kassel, northern Hesse. The area consists of four separate areas and reaches a total area of 17.52 hectares .
Location and characteristics of the area
The area is east or northeast of the village of Lamerden, one of the sub-areas borders on the outskirts. It is separated from the Diemel by the embankment of the Kassel – Warburg railway line (formerly Friedrich-Wilhelms-Nordbahn). Two of the partial areas include the remainder of an old arm of the Diemel , which has been reduced in size compared to the original state and divided in the process by various artificial embankments. This lies in the flood zone of the river, its water level is influenced by pressurized water from the river bed and slope water. The remaining open water area is almost 3500 square meters. The other partial areas form a steep slope to the west exposed to the Diemel valley, the subsurface of which consists of shell limestone . There are about 5 hectares of species-rich limestone grasslands that are partially interspersed with a dense population of juniper bushes . In addition, the area includes a small, unfilled former limestone quarry. The remaining areas are occupied by hedges and bushes and small forest areas.
Vegetation, flora and fauna
In the area of the oxbow lake there are reed beds, stocks of the swamp iris ( Iris pseudacorus ) and tree-shaped willow species.
The calcareous grasslands in the area belong to the so-called Gentian Fiederzwenken lawn, phytosociological the Association Gentiano-Koelerietum, which is the (former) grazed variant of calcareous grasslands. Numerous rare and endangered plant species grow in these areas, such as the common cat's paw ( Antennaria dioica ), swamp heart leaf ( Parnassia palustris ), cross gentian ( Gentiana cruciata ), German fringed gentian ( Gentianella germanica ) and numerous orchid species, including large stocks of the helmet Orchid ( Orchis militaris ) and purple orchid ( Orchis purpurea ). Former occurrences of lady's slipper ( Cypripedium calceolus ), like some other threatened species, are now extinct. The breeding bird species include red-backed shrike and nightingale . Eleven species of butterflies live in the area, including the blue gentian ant ( Phengaris rebeli ).
natural reserve
The area was designated as a nature reserve in 1989. In 2008 it was also protected as a Natura 2000 area. In the North Hesse 2000 landscape framework plan , it is part of sub-area 1 of the biotope network concept for lean grasslands, mountain meadows and heaths. With a total of 750 hectares of limestone grassland in the federal states of Hesse and North Rhine-Westphalia, spread over 145 areas, the Diemeltal is one of the most important occurrences of limestone grasslands in northern Germany.
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- Lothar and Sieglinde Nitsche: Nature reserves in Hessen. Volume 2: City of Kassel, District of Kassel and Schwalm-Eder District. 2003. Cognitio-Verlag, Niedenstein, ISBN 3-932583-07-8 .
- Thomas Fartmann: The butterfly communities of the semi-arid grass complexes of the Diemel valley. Biocenology of butterflies and rams in an old hudeland. Treatises from the Westphalian Museum of Natural History 66 (1), 2004. 256 pages + vegetation tables in the appendix.
- Limestone grasslands and Diemelaltwasser near Lamerden. EUNIS fact sheet . EEA European Environment Agency, 2013.
- 4422-303 Lean grassland and Diemelaltwasser near Lamerden. (FFH area) Profiles of the Natura 2000 areas. Published by the Federal Agency for Nature Conservation . As of April 14, 2015.
- 2.1.2.2 Biotope network conception of grasslands, mountain meadows and heaths . Landscape framework plan of the North Hesse region 2000. Published by the Kassel Regional Council, 2001.