Primeval forest in the Lüß
The primeval forest in Lüß is a natural forest reserve designated by the Lower Saxony State Forests in the Lüßwald near the village of Unterlüß in the Südheide Nature Park . It is officially known as the Lüßberg natural forest .
particularities
purpose
The Lüßwald is part of one of the largest forest areas in Germany. It has a size of 7500 hectares. In the middle of this forest area, a 29.1 hectare wooded area was designated as a nature reserve in 1974. It is used for nature conservation and also for forest research and teaching. There is no forest work in such designated forest sections, the forest is left to its own devices. According to Section 31 of the Lower Saxony Forest Act and the Landscape Ordinance, entry into the “Primeval Forest in Lüß” is prohibited. The forest may be entered for research, whereby attention must be paid to "non-destructive entry". The Northwest German Forest Research Institute based in Göttingen is responsible for research, here Department A "Forest growth" in the subject area "Forest nature conservation / natural forest research".
Derivation of the official name
The official name of the reserve is "Naturwald Lüßberg". The Lüßberg as namesake is in the immediate vicinity the highest elevation in the Lüß with 130 meters of altitude. A memorial stone there commemorates hurricane Quimburga on November 13, 1972, which caused immense damage in the forest.
Flora and fauna
The forest area is a mixed forest, in which mainly red beech , sessile oak and pine grow. But also spruce and birch can be found there. When trees die, small clearings are created in which forest lizards find a habitat. Deer and roe deer find food there. In these clearings, under the protection of the trees, new woody plants are created, which grow undisturbed as the sunlight reaches the forest floor. New habitats are created in the rotting old wood, as numerous animal species depend on it. Nutrients created by the rotting of the wood nourish the soil. In this way, forests with trees of different ages arise in an undisturbed cycle of growth and decay.
Beeches and oaks can get very old. European beeches can live up to 300 years, oaks even up to 800 years. There are beetle species for which the oaks are suitable as a habitat from an age of 120 years. Others only use the tree when the end of its life is approaching and there is already a lot of dead wood available. The larvae are then deposited there. When building caves, the black woodpecker depends on old beech trees with a certain trunk thickness. In commercial forests, the beech trees are often not old enough for this bird species.
The forest area is a retreat for many, even rare animal species, such as B. the black stork . The wolf is also discovering the habitat more and more, as the Lüß is rich in deer, deer and wild boars . Predatory game such as martens and foxes also live here. In 2018 even the lynx was spotted in the Lüneburg Heath. The occurrence of the European wildcat was detected as early as 2017 . The fact that wolf, lynx and wildcat are found in one region has been described as unique in Germany.
Forest work
In the "jungle in Lüß" no see forestry work place and the forest should evolve gradually into a real jungle. Exceptions are e.g. B. Fire protection and forest protection measures in the event of imminent danger. If z. B. fallen trees fall on paths on the edge of the area or threaten to fall then these are felled and sawed to prevent accidents. However, clippings are not recycled, but deposited at the edges and left to the forest. Any trade in cuttings from reserves is not permitted.
Other "primeval forests"
There are a total of 107 such forests in Lower Saxony (as of April 24, 2020). Germany-wide there are even 745. By 2025, 10% of the forest area in Lower Saxony is to be designated as natural forests. This means that the state forest will lose around 12.5 million euros in “economic wood”. The state forest expresses the value nature has for humans and animals. This is how you can meet people's growing desire to find untouched nature. In addition, society is very curious about the connections in natural forests. Environmental education and public relations are areas in which natural forests are brought closer to the general public through the NLF. This is also the case with the primeval forest in Lüß, where there are many information boards on a hiking trail and the forest is brought closer to people (see tourism).
Tourism
In the Südheide nature park, numerous hiking trails are designated by Lüneburger Heide GmbH. For example, a hiking route entitled “The primeval forest in Lüß (short tour 7.2 km, circular route), forest adventure path” leads along the forest. Display boards invite you to linger and bring those interested closer to the forest.
Trivia
In the neighboring community of Südheide with the suburb of Unterlüß there is an association "Urwald Team eV", which, however, only bears the name and is a leisure club. The Lower Saxony Forestry Office Unterlüß is also in the immediate vicinity. Volker Reinecke has been the head of the office since July 1, 2019.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c Federal Agency for Agriculture and Food: Profile of the Lüßberg natural forest. Retrieved July 2, 2019 .
- ^ The President of the Lower Saxony State Parliament: Lower Saxony Law on Forests and Landscape Regulations. (PDF) Lower Saxony State Parliament, accessed on July 2, 2019 .
- ↑ Forest nature conservation / natural forest research. Retrieved July 3, 2019 .
- ↑ a b BUND: Lynx migrates to the Lüneburg Heath. November 7, 2018, accessed July 2, 2019 .
- ↑ Lower Saxony State Parliament: Section 31 Bans and Bans. (PDF) Retrieved July 2, 2019 .
- ↑ Information and coordination center for biological diversity: Overviews of the areas of the NWR - status: April 24th, 2020. Retrieved April 28, 2020 .
- ↑ Press Blog: Primeval Forests of Tomorrow. Retrieved July 2, 2019 .
- ^ Lüneburger Heide GmbH: Unterlüß: The primeval forest in the Lüß (short tour 7.2 km, circular route), forest adventure trail. Retrieved July 2, 2019 .
- ^ Community of Südheide: Associations | Südheide community. Retrieved July 2, 2019 .
- ↑ Forestry Office - Unterlüß. In: Lower Saxony State Forests. Retrieved on July 2, 2019 (German).
- ↑ Change of staff in the Unterlüß Forestry Office. In: Lower Saxony State Forests. June 21, 2019, accessed on July 2, 2019 (German).
Coordinates: 52 ° 50 ′ 6 ″ N , 10 ° 19 ′ 19 ″ E