Sand dune at the Apfelbach
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Sand dune at the Apfelbach
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 Natural monument "Sanddüne am Apfelbach" (2017) |
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| location | Weiterstadt , Darmstadt-Dieburg district , Hesse , Germany | |
| surface | approx. 1.6 ha | |
| Identifier | ND 432.681 | |
| Geographical location | 49 ° 57 ' N , 8 ° 35' E | |
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| Setup date | August 10, 1991 | |
The sand dune on the Apfelbach is an extensive natural monument in the district of Graefenhausen , town of Weiterstadt in the district of Darmstadt-Dieburg in southern Hesse.
location
The sand dune on the Apfelbach is located in the natural area of Hegbach-Apfelbach-Grund, western lower valley . The natural monument is located about 2.2 kilometers north-north-west of Graefenhausen, north of the Apfelbach and east of state road 3113. A high-voltage line runs in the west of the area .
Protection purpose
The natural monument was placed under nature protection by ordinance of August 7, 1991, published in the Darmstädter Echo on August 10, 1991 . It covers an area of about 1.6 hectares. The sand dune should be protected for scientific and historical reasons as well as because of its rarity and peculiarity.
Description, flora and fauna
The sand dune on the Apfelbach was blown by the wind at the end of the last ice age around 10,000 years ago. Today, drifting sand dunes are relict sites for rare or strongly threatened plant and animal species that migrated from the steppes of Europe. The Apfelbachdüne is an acidic dune with largely wood-free vegetation of silver grass fields , semi-ruderal semi-arid grassland and tansy fields . The directly adjacent Apfelbach has been renatured in the area of the natural monument.
The apple creek dune is an important retreat for the very rare sand dwarf grass . The grass, which is only a few centimeters long, blooms in March, together with the also tiny spring hunger flower . Other notable plant species are Baden panicle grass , silver grass , hairy awl grass , mountain sand bells , sand thyme , yellow sun rose , stonecrop and common cat's paw .
The raw sandy soil and sand crashes ranging from rabbit warrens are of wild bees , grave wasps and other arthropods populated. Dune tiger beetles , common dust beetles and the endangered shaggy rose beetle live on the dunes.
Sand dune at the Apfelbach with a population of sand dwarf grass (red areas, 2016)
Sand dwarf grass (2016)
the rare mushroom Poronia erici grows on donkey dung in the natural monument (2016)
Poronia erici , close-up (2016)
Expansion areas and maintenance measures
On old topographical maps, the inland dune at the Apfelbach was much larger than today's natural monument. To the east of it, the city of Weiterstadt has created a sandy lawn on 1.2 hectares. As part of the “Ried und Sand” project, the sand biotope was expanded to a total of around 5 hectares by sanding over additional areas. For this purpose, deep sand was poured from a large construction site in the Weiterstadt industrial area ( LOOP5 ) and from Darmstadt. Many ruderal plants bloom here and are visited by butterflies and wild bees.
The areas are regularly grazed with sheep and donkeys in order to avoid encroachment and to keep the soil nutrient-poor.
A BioTopTour of the Darmstadt-Dieburg district leads along the dune.
See also
Individual evidence
- ↑ Map of the natural monument. BürgerGIS district of Darmstadt-Dieburg. Darmstadt-Dieburg district, accessed on August 6, 2020 .
- ↑ a b c d e Horst Bathon, Georg Wittenberger: The natural monuments of the Darmstadt-Dieburg district with biotope tours. 2nd expanded and completely revised edition. In: District Committee of the Darmstadt-Dieburg District - Lower Nature Conservation Authority, Darmstadt (Hrsg.): Series of publications, Darmstadt-Dieburg district. 2016, ISBN 978-3-00-050136-4 . Pp. 195-199.
- ^ Ordinance on the protection of natural monuments in the Darmstadt-Dieburg district. (pdf; 120 kB) District Committee of the Darmstadt-Dieburg District, August 7, 1991, accessed on August 6, 2020 .
- ↑ The dune grows. Frankfurter Rundschau, fr.de, March 26, 2010, accessed on August 6, 2020 .
- ↑ Dune at the Apfelbach (Weiterstadt-Graefenhausen). HLG Hessische Landgesellschaft mbH, Ökoagentur, 2012, accessed on August 6, 2020 .
- ↑ 19th BioTopTour: From Steinrodsee to the rearmost day meadow. Darmstadt-Dieburg district, 2008, accessed on August 6, 2020 .
