Habitat type

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A habitat type , also FFH habitat type (abbreviation LRT), is an abstract type from the totality of identical and similar natural habitats and serves as a particularly high protection status for the description of the landscape within the framework of the requirements of the Habitats Directive ( Natura 2000 areas ). Each of the 231 habitat types has an EU code that is unique across Europe ( Annex I of the Habitats Directive). Some habitat types have been classified as priority , which means that they are threatened with disappearing and that the European Community has a special responsibility for their conservation because their main distribution is in Europe.

definition

The Habitats Directive defines natural habitats of community interest as those habitats that:

  1. are threatened with disappearing in the area of ​​their natural occurrence or
  2. have a small natural range due to their decline or due to their already limited occurrence or
  3. have typical features of one or more of the following five biogeographical regions: Alpine, Atlantic, Continental, Macaronesian and Mediterranean.

target

According to the Habitats Directive, habitats with animal and plant species of community interest are to be allocated to special protected areas in order to create a coherent European ecological network . For the original determination of the location of areas for designation as habitat type, the data available in Germany on biotope types and areas protected by nature conservation were used. The approach for the final designation is different in the European countries, in Germany areas were named in which habitat types should be found.

tasks

The designation of an area as a habitat type is based on the occurrence of specified species in Annexes II, IV and V of the Habitats Directive. For the respective countries, among other things, the preservation of the state is a requirement associated with the expulsion. In order to be able to maintain or improve a conservation status, an observation and evaluation of the defined areas is necessary. The states contribute to the establishment of Natura 2000 by designating and reporting the status of habitat types .

Examples

Habitat type 6510: Lean, lowland hay meadow

Habitat types are, for example, mountain hay meadows , caves that are not open to tourists, or heavy metal lawns .

The list of FFH habitat types in Annex I of the Habitats Directive gives an overview of all habitat types, 91 of which are in Germany and 72 in Austria.

literature

  • Jens Sachteleben, Martin Behrens: Concept for monitoring the conservation status of habitat types and species of the Habitats Directive in Germany. Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (Ed.): BfN scripts. Bonn 2010, ISBN 978-3-89624-013-2 ( online ; PDF file; 3.58 MB).

Web links