Lörmecketal nature reserve (Soest district)

	Lörmecketal nature reserve IUCN Category IV - Habitat / Species Management Area
	Grassland and forest in the NSG west of Kallenhardt (2016)
location	Rüthen and Warstein , North Rhine-Westphalia , Germany
surface	2.729 km²
Identifier	SO-073
WDPA ID	318744
Natura 2000 ID	DE-4516-301
Geographical location	51 ° 26 ' N , 8 ° 24' E Coordinates: 51 ° 26 '6 " N , 8 ° 24' 25" E
Setup date	2000
administration	Lower landscape authority of the Soest district

The Lörmecketal nature reserve (NSG identification SO-073) is a nature reserve in the area of the municipalities of Rüthen and Warstein in the Soest district in North Rhine-Westphalia . It was designated by the district government in 2000 and covers around 270 hectares of the Lörmecke valley from the district boundary to just before the confluence with the Glenne . The FFH area Lörmecketal (identifier DE-4516-301) is largely congruent with the nature reserve , making it part of the European Natura 2000 network of protected areas .

In the neighboring Hochsauerlandkreis , two further nature reserves are designated in the vicinity of the source of the Lörmecke: the Lörmeckal NSG in the urban area of Meschede and the Lörmeckal system in the area of Bestwig .

Area description

The Lörmeckal is located in the North Sauerland Oberland . The nature reserve includes the Lörmecke and its floodplain with some surrounding slopes.

The areas of the Hohler Stein cave and the Hoher Stein rock with adjacent grasslands were included in the NSG.

Rare animal and plant species can be found in the area. The notable types of biotope include semi-arid lawns .

Stream of the Lörmecke in the NSG
Deciduous forest in the NSG
Höhlenfels Hohler Stein in the NSG
Rock formation Hoher Stein in the NSG

Protection purpose

The NSG should in particular the springs and flowing waters, the fen and quarry forest areas, the near-natural deciduous forests, limestone semi-arid grasslands and rocky crests, warmth-loving shrubbery and fringes, grasslands and dwarf shrub heaths, the moist and extensively used meadows and pastures, with a multitude of protected and z. T. endangered or endangered plant and animal species, u. a. protect.

As with all nature reserves in Germany, the protection designation pointed out that the area became a nature reserve “because of the rarity, special character and beauty of the area”.