Weschnitzinsel
The Weschnitzinsel von Lorsch is a nature conservation , bird protection and FFH area in the Hessian Ried . It is an important stepping stone biotope for resting migratory birds and a habitat for rare meadow breeders.
location and size
The Weschnitzinsel is located in the southeast of Lorsch , between Neuer Weschnitz and a dam of the flood retention basin. The nature reserve has an area of 200 hectares . From an ecological point of view, it is the remains of what was once a huge meadow area that stretched between Lorsch, Heppenheim , Weinheim and Viernheim .
History
This meadow landscape was originally characterized by a high groundwater level and regular flooding by the two arms of the Weschnitz ( Alte Weschnitz and Neue Weschnitz ). Especially at the time of the snowmelt, the inhabitants of this landscape waged a real battle against the floods . In the 1960s, straightening , river bed deepening, drainage and dams largely solved these problems. Intensive use of the groundwater supplies as drinking water also lowered the groundwater level by around 2 m. As a result, large parts of the meadow landscape could be used for agriculture. Farmers were resettled in the Weschnitz lowlands as part of a resettler program .
As a result of these significant interventions in the ecosystem , many species of birds were driven from the Weschnitzinsel. At the end of the 1950s the meadow rail ( Crex crex ), in the 1960s the common snipe ( Gallinago gallinago ), the black godwit ( Limosa limosa ) and the short-eared owl ( Asio flammeus ) were marketed. The whinchat ( Saxicola rubetra ) and the gray wagtail ( Motacilla flava ) were common breeding birds - they have disappeared to this day. After pyramid poplars - the breeding trees of the black- fronted shrike ( Lanius minor ) - were felled at the Alte Weschnitz , this colony of six to eight breeding pairs also disappeared from the Weschnitz Island. The construction of the nearby federal motorway 5 also left clear traces in the ecosystem of the former meadow landscape. Originally up to 15 pairs of curlews breed in the meadow landscape . Since December 10, 1979, the Weschnitzinsel has been designated as a nature reserve at the request of the Hessian Society for Ornithology and Nature Conservation. One of the main reasons was the protection of the curlew ( Numenius arquata ). In 1979 there were only four breeding pairs and in 2001 only one. In 2007 the Weschnitzinsel was designated as part of the European bird sanctuary " Hessian Altneckarschlingen ".
The island was flooded by the floods in 2013 to protect the Weschnitz from overflowing.
In the 2010s an extensive renaturation of the Weschnitzinsel was tackled, in which the two arms of the Weschnitz (Alte and Neue Weschnitz) are brought together within the protected meadow floodplain as a common, freely meandering river. The diversion of the river water into the original river bed improves both the quality of the river and the condition of the surrounding floodplain chemically , ecologically and morphologically in the sense of the numerous breeding and resting birds and other inhabitants of the open floodplain landscapes. Nature conservationists had put forward the idea of renaturation over and over again for many decades, but due to its size and complexity, the project to implement the European Water Framework Directive , the European Nature Protection Directive and flood protection was only started in 2012. After several years of preliminary planning, the approval was issued as a planning approval decision in January 2017 and the construction work was completed at the end of 2017. In October 2017, the Weschnitz dams were pierced and both bodies of water were diverted into the new river bed.
Breeding birds on the Weschnitzinsel
In addition to the lapwing ( Vanellus vanellus ), little owls ( Athene noctua ), partridges ( Perdix perdix ), pheasants ( Phasianus colchicus ), quail ( Coturnix coturnix ), skylarks ( Alauda arvensis ) and gray chamois ( Miliaria calandra ) breed on the Weschnitzinsel .
Food guests
The island's food guests include the great cormorant ( Phalacrocorax carbo ), the white stork ( Ciconia ciconia ), the gray heron ( Ardea cinerea ), the red kite ( Milvus milvus ) and the black kite ( Milvus migrans ), the buzzard ( Buteo buteo ) , the Marsh Harrier ( Circus aeruginosus ), the peregrine falcon ( Falco peregrinus ), the kestrel ( Falco tinnunculus ), the tree falcon ( Falco subbuteo ) and the kingfisher ( Alcedo atthis ).
The Weschnitzinsel is also of great importance as a “stepping stone” for migrating and migrating birds. Many of the resting and feeding areas for migratory birds in the Upper Rhine Plain have been lost in recent decades.
Since 2002, attempts have been made to make the ecosystem even more attractive for a number of bird species through targeted flooding of the old meanders. With this measure, the snipe returned to breeding on the Weschnitz Island after more than 50 years of absence.
Viewpoints
On the north-western edge of the nature reserve, near the Herrenbrücke (Herrenbrücke) leading southeast of Lorsch over the Alte Weschnitz, stands the approximately 9 meter high Hans Ludwig Tower, which offers very good views of the Weschnitz Island. Not far north of the Alte Postbrücke, which leads over the Neue Weschnitz on the western edge of Heppenheim, there has been a covered viewing platform since 2018.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Weschnitzinsel von Lorsch ( Memento of the original from September 1, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Hessian Ministry for the Environment, Rural Areas and Consumer Protection
- ↑ a b c d e f H. Ludwig: Nature reserve Weschnitzinsel von Lorsch and its birds ( Memento of the original from June 7, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed March 22, 2008
- ↑ Protected Planet: "Official Record for Hessische Altneckarschlingen." United Nations Environment Program's World Conservation Monitoring Center (UNEP-WCMC), 2014–2016. Retrieved February 18, 2017
- ↑ H. Ludwig: Flooded old meanders increase the stepping stone function of the nature reserve "Weschnitzinsel von Lorsch" ( Memento of the original from August 15, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed March 22, 2008
- ↑ N. Schmelzing: Now popular with fishers and day trippers ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , Bergsträßer Anzeiger from September 7, 2007
- ↑ Flooding of the old meander a success for bird conservationists ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , Bergsträßer Anzeiger from February 25, 2005
- ↑ A tower in honor of Hans Ludwig in Echo Online from September 9, 2016, accessed on February 26, 2020
literature
Web links
Coordinates: 49 ° 38 ′ 4 " N , 8 ° 35 ′ 30" E