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Fotograf: Anders Johansson
Photo: Anders Johansson
Västra äng, Naturreservat
- Nature reserve
- County: Kalmar län och Öland
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Description
Västra äng is today dominated by deciduous forest, but as the name suggests, the area has a history as a hay meadow. The long haymaking tradition is still kept alive in a small part of the reserve. Not for the sake of the hay harvest, but to benefit the meadow's species-rich flora.
Farmed land
Västra äng belongs to Jämjö village. In the early 1800s, the area was used as meadowland and was then surrounded by a stone wall. Old maps show that there were elements of small fields, sandy areas and deciduous trees in the meadowland. The fields were abandoned early on, but hay was harvested from the meadows until the 1910s. After that, cattle grazed in the area until the 1960s. Today, a small part of Västra äng is again used as a meadow.
Specialized meadow plants
The meadow is one of our most species-rich natural environments with a myriad of flowers, grasses, butterflies, bees and bumblebees. Plants are adapted in different ways to mowing and the meadow's poor soil. Some plants are small and do not need much nutrition. Others have a large rosette of leaves close to the ground that escape the clutches of links. Yet another adaptation is the ability to shoot new shoots after mowing.
Forest flowers and old trees
Abandoned meadows are now home to lush deciduous forest. Here you can see many different flowers in spring. Like the strange water lily, which lacks chlorophyll and lives as a parasite on the roots of hazel. Notice all the old, rough broad-leaved trees with wide crowns. They are reminiscent of the time when the area was still farmed, when the trees were not as dense as today. The old trees are home to many rare lichens and fungi.
Activities And Facilities
- Nature reserve
Facts
Year of decision: 1995
Area: 15 hectares
Municipality: Borgholm
Landowner: Individual
Administrator: Kalmar County Administrative Board
Directions
Västra äng is located in the northern part of the midland forest, north of the Karum nature reserve. Turn east from road 136 in Rälla, towards Högsrum. Keep towards Gärdslösa (left) where the road splits. After about 1 km, Noaks Ark appears on the left. After another 1 km turn left towards the village of Karum. Parking is on the right side before the village, follow the signs.The parking lot is shared with Karum.From the parking lot, a trail starts through Karum's nature reserve to Västra äng. Within the reserve there is a nice circular loop that is marked in white.
Regulations
In the nature reserve you are not allowed:
- Drive any vehicle or craft.
- Camp, set up a caravan or similar.
- Ride a horse.
- Bring a dog or other animal that is not on a leash.
- Putting up a board, sign, poster or similar device or making inscriptions.
- Make a fire.
- Damage or remove fixed natural objects or surface formations.
- Collecting loose rocks or removing pieces of bedrock.
- Damaging fixed ancient remains (e.g. stone walls, cairns, etc.).
- Digging or pulling up vascular plants.
- Picking or damaging mosses, lichens or wood fungi.
- Damage or remove trees, stumps, bark, branches, shrubs or brush that are growing or dead.
- Hunt, kill, capture or injure wild mammals, amphibians, reptiles or birds.
- Remove or damage eggs or nests.
- Deliberately disturbing wildlife.
- Using the area for competitions or exercises.
Full regulations
C. Regulations under Section 10 of the Nature Conservation Act on what the public must observe within the reserve.
In addition to what otherwise applies, it is forbidden to
- drive any kind of vehicle or craft,
- camping, setting up a caravan or similar,
- riding horses
- bring an unleashed dog or other loose pet,
- affix a board, sign, inscription, poster or similar device,
- make a fire
- destroy, remove or damage a fixed natural object or surface formation
- collect loose stones or remove pieces from the bedrock
- damage a fixed ancient monument
- digging up or picking vascular plants, woodland fungi, mosses or lichens
- damage or remove growing or dead trees, stumps, bark, branches, bushes or reeds
- hunt, kill, capture or injure wild mammals, amphibians, reptiles or birds, remove or damage eggs or nests or otherwise disturb wildlife
- use the area for competition or training purposes.
Scientific or other studies must be carried out in consultation with the County Administrative Board.
Contact
Email address
Per Markus Jönsson
Organization logotype
Please be aware that some of these texts have been automatically translated.
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