Hjällen, Naturreservat

Hjällen is the mountain in the west that gave its name to the reserve. The beech forest has been largely untouched here since the 19th century. It is this that gives the reserve its high natural values. Here you will also find small bogs surrounded by marshes and swamp forest. With a bit of luck, you can see the pretty pearl butterfly flying over cranberries and tufa. The forest has no paths but is easy to wander in.

150 meters above sea level

The word "hjälle" means something elevated. The highest point on the mountain reaches 150 meters above sea level. Here, the bedrock breaks out and the unusual rock type amphibolite is found in fractures. The rock was formed under very high pressures and temperatures when it was compressed deep in the Earth's crust during the formation of mountain ranges around 260 million years ago.

Beech forest with high natural values

The beech forest in the reserve has been largely untouched since the 19th century. Some trees are over 150 years old. The forest is particularly valuable because it is rich in dead trees, both standing and lying. The decaying trees create important habitats for many rare species of insects, lichens, mosses and fungi. Decaying trees are currently in short supply in Swedish forests.

Bog, marsh and swamp forest

Within the reserve there are small bogs surrounded by marshes and swamp forest. The bog in the far east offers white mosses in many different colors. There are species such as floating white moss, magnificent white moss, purple white moss and rusty white moss. With a bit of luck, you can see the pretty pearl butterfly flying over cranberries and tufa.

Traces of the toil of the past

In the forest there are several stone cairns and stone walls that have ancient origins. These are traces of the people who cultivated the land long ago. Some of the reserve's cairns may date from the early Iron Age. In the northern part of the reserve there are more remains of ancient farming.

Outdoor life

Parking is available as well as a self-closing gate to the pasture. The forest has no paths but is easy to walk in. Remember to take your rubbish home.

In English

Welcome to Hjällen Nature Reserves

Hjällen offers tree-covered hills, damp wetland forest and old pasture. Large parts of the beech forest have remained untouched since the 19th century. The combination of fallen tree trunks, dead wood and ancient trees provides an exciting environment for both the visitor and the forest inhabitants. Rare lichens grow here, such as bacidia rosella, bacidia incompta and pyrenula nitida. Many wood-inhabiting insects make their home in the dead wood.

The forested high ground at the western end has given its name to the nature reserve. "Hjälle" means something that is raised up. The ground is bare in places and shows the bedrock which is an unusual type called amphibolite.

In the forest to the west of the road is a bog surrounded by marsh and wetland forest. If you are wearing boots you can walk in the wet areas and look for different types of bog moss. It can be green, yellow, pink or red - especially in late summer. Feathery bog moss, red bog moss and rusty bog moss are some of the species found in the reserve. To the east of the road lies an area of old pasture covered in flowers, a haven for butterflies such as the purple-edged copper and the New Forest burnet.

In the forest you will see evidence of man's efforts in the past to cultivate the soil. Look for mounds of stones among the trees. These are clearance cairns, some of which are so old that they date back to Viking times. However, the soil here has been poor and stony and never properly cultivated.

The area has no marked out paths. But do go off and explore among the trees and stones, enjoy the peace and quiet and visit the top of Hjällen. The Skåneleden hiking trail passes just outside the reserve's southern boundary, and the Fulltofta walking area lies southwest of the reserve.

Regulations

Within Hjällen Nature Reserve it is forbidden to:

• dig or in any other way damage boulders, stones, slabs of rock, terrain or stone walls,
• remove dead wood, break twigs, cut down or in any other way damage living or dead trees and bushes,
• pick, dig up or in any other way damage plants, moss, lichen or woodinhabiting fungi,
• deliberately disturb or affect the fauna,
• bring dogs or other pets not on a lead,
• light a fire,
• take your bicycle anywhere other than the parking area and the road to and from the parking area,
• put up a tent for longer than one night, or park a caravan, camper van or similar,
• put up a structure or objects that do not belong in a nature reserve,
• organize competitions that could have a negative impact on the natural values in the area,
• put up posters, signs, plaques, notices, tape or other equivalent items.

Without permission from the Country Administrative Board it is also forbidden to:

• collect invertebrates such as beetles and molluscs. However, you may collect a few examples on condition that this does not violate the environment protection regulations and that traps are not used.

Funded by the European Union