Ventärnen, Naturreservat

In the Ventärnen nature reserve, the rule is boots on, because you can hardly get around dry-shod in the wetlands around the pond. Untouched swamp forests are rare in the southern parts of the county and the site has very high natural values.

One shows many

The humidity is high throughout the reserve and this provides a favorable climate for mosses, lichens and fungi. Cat's foot lichen is a species that provides information that the area has the potential to host other fragile and demanding species. It needs both a humid local climate and a long period of uninterrupted presence of older trees.

The ecocycle

The activities of beavers provide space and give rise to new life. Various fungi thrive on the dead stumps and trunks, and the flooded and dammed land favors aquatic animals. The bugs in turn attract species that feed in the water - one man's death, another man's bread.

Undisturbed bird

The three-toed woodpecker has been observed in the reserve. It is close to its southern border - the red-listed bird is today mainly found in northern Sweden. The three-toed woodpecker is a bird that lives in environments with a large number of dead and dying trees, so the species finds it difficult to survive in today's "well-cleaned" woodlands. Especially in winter, it needs to utilize vast areas of untouched forest to find food.

Restored wetlands

In the 20th century, many ditches were dug in woodlands to grow more trees and provide wood for the forest industry. By filling in the ditches in the early 2020s, previously ditched land in the reserve was restored.

Accessibility

Ventärnen belongs to level 1 in the County Administrative Board's leveling of the county's nature reserves, which means that the reserve has a wilderness character and lacks outdoor recreation facilities.