Styrian Eisenwurzen Nature and Geopark

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The Steirische Eisenwurzen Nature and Geopark is both a nature park and a geopark in Styria in Austria . The park, founded in 1996, is located in Upper Styria in the Styrian part of the Eisenwurzen and is the largest nature park in Styria. As a geopark, it is one of the UNESCO Global Geoparks .

geography

The seven nature park communities of Altenmarkt bei St. Gallen , Weißenbach an der Enns , St. Gallen , Landl , Gams bei Hieflau , Palfau , Wildalpen were originally members of the nature park . The total area of ​​the nature park is 586 km² at altitudes from 406 to 2144  m above sea level.
During the municipal structural reform in Styria , some municipalities were merged with others from January 2015, so there are only four nature park municipalities: Altenmarkt near St. Gallen , St. Gallen , Landl , Wildalpen .

Landscape and protected area

The nature park is characterized by its extraordinary wealth of forests, untouched natural landscapes and exceptional river valleys. In the 15th and 16th centuries , hammermen , charcoal burners and raftsmen shaped the region. At that time, the ore extracted from the Erzberg was processed in the Eisenwurzen . The nature park has been a European Geopark since 2002 and was awarded the Global Geopark certificate by UNESCO in 2004 for its activities . In addition to the “Ennstaler and Eisenerzer Alps” and “Hochschwab - Zeller Staritzen” nature reserves, there are also the “ Wildalpener Salzatal ” and “Wegscheider Teich” nature reserves . In addition, the Natura 2000 European protection area " Ennstaler Alpen / Gesäuse " is located in the nature park. There are also numerous natural monuments in the area.

Flora and fauna

In the valleys of the Styrian Eisenwurzen Nature Park you will primarily find meadows with pastures and orchards . Thanks to the natural and climatic conditions, the farms find the best conditions for dairy farming, calf rearing and forest management. But there are also remnants of moorland and floodplains. In the nature park community of Mooslandl there is a flat and low moor that formed on the mighty Ice Age gravel terraces of the Enns .

Large parts of the nature park consist of forest. The predominant tree species are spruce, fir, pine and beech. Particularly noteworthy are the ravine forests (pines), which formed the dominant forest community in the preboreal , i.e. the preheating period. Today they are regarded as so-called relic sites. Characteristic plants of the area are: the snow roses, the daphne , various buttercups , coltsfoot , liverwort and the wood anemone . A little higher up you will find alpine pastures that are now used as excursion destinations. In the past, however, alpine farming was of great importance here. While the Niederalmen still exist today, the high alpine pastures were replaced by grazing rights for forestry and hunting reasons. Special plants on the Bürstling lawns of the alpine pastures are white germer , alpine mampfer, arnica , blue monkshood and silver thistle . Slightly higher, in the alpine regions of the nature park, crevice vegetation, debris fields, alpine mats and dwarf shrub communities alternate with pine fields. Typical plants for the limestone crevices are the auricles or the peter's trunk.

Attractions

In the nature park there are natural beauties , natural monuments or places of power that have often developed through centuries of interaction between nature and man, for example gorges, caves, ponds, moors , waterfalls and sources of origin. These locations are easily accessible and freely accessible.

Natural sights

Brunnsee in Wildalpen, Kraushöhle in Gams near Hieflau, Nothklamm in Gams near Hieflau, Palfauer Konglomeratschlamm, Spitzenbachklamm "Valley of Butterflies", Wasserlochklamm, Kläfferquelle.

Built sights

In addition to the natural sights, there are also man-made structures that help shape cultural life in the region. These attractions include GeoPfad, GeoWerkstatt, GeoZentrum, Museum HochQuellenWasser Wildalpen, Forestry Museum Silvanum and the water and adventure park Eisenwurzen.

Web links

Commons : Styrian Eisenwurzen Nature Park  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Homepage of the nature park , accessed on November 22, 2014.

Coordinates: 47 ° 41 ′  N , 14 ° 48 ′  E