Arådalen nature reserve
The Arådalen nature reserve ( Arådalens naturreservat ) was designated in 2006 in the area around Arådalen in Sweden and is part of the Europe-wide Natura 2000 project.
With a size of 10,972 hectares, it is one of the largest nature reserves in Jämtland. Large parts of the area were very important as grazing land for the farmers in Oviken and Myssjö in the past centuries . Within the reserve are the pastures Östra Arådalen and Valskaftet as well as the Busjöfjället ridge and the Buhösten lake.
Coordinates: 62 ° 53 ′ 43 " N , 13 ° 37 ′ 50" E
The landscape consists of moor and forest. There are both raised and fens here. The solid areas of these moors are covered with Lapland willows , spit willows and sedges . The various types of sedges dominate the soft layers that cover large areas. The wooded areas are dominated by a more or less closed spruce forest, which is interrupted by individual moors. Species of deciduous trees such as bog birch , dwarf birch and mountain ash also play a major role, especially in higher regions . Pines occur occasionally in or on the edge of the moors. In places there is a relatively large amount of lying and standing dead wood and a large proportion of old spruce trees broken and dried out by the wind . These represent an important habitat for numerous insects, beetles and fungi.