Listarumsåsens naturreservat, Naturreservat

The forested Listarumsåsen is a mighty pebble ridge that stretches out into the open plains just north of Smedstorp. Once upon a time, the ridge was covered by open pastures with giant trees. Today you can walk in a lush forest filled with birdsong.

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Forested ridges and open pastures

The area's gravel ridges were formed by the ice river currents that passed over Skåne when the inland ice melted away. In the 1800s, this was the site of the 'Djurabackarne' - hills with open, shrub-rich pastures and occasional broad-crowned trees. Today, the ridges are forested and only small areas of pasture and wet marshland are interspersed in the woodland.

A forest in transition

The century-old forest, dominated by oak and beech, has been allowed to grow freely. It has developed into a varied woodland with a large number of shrub and tree species. Today, all of southern Sweden's wild deciduous trees can be found here.

The forest should continue to be allowed to develop at its own pace with trees of different ages. Preserving dying and dead trees creates a habitat for a variety of lichens, fungi and insects. Within the reserve there are forests of different character, including damp birch swamps and areas dominated by lime trees.

The song and flowers of spring

Listarum Nature Reserve is at its most beautiful in spring. The ground is covered in a rich spring flora with bluebells, spring onions, nunwort and the special spotted lungwort. The forest is full of birdsong. The typical warblers of the deciduous forest, such as blackcap and green warbler, nest here, along with the long-tailed duck, blue tit and nuthatch. In the fall, the nutcracker comes to visit in search of nuts and berries.

Listarum Nature Reserve was established in the 1970s to protect the ridges from gravel extraction. The reserve consists of three areas located less than a kilometer apart on Listarumsåsen. As the ridge slopes both north and south, different microclimates are created with differences in temperature and humidity on the two slopes. This means that interesting differences in vegetation can be found.

Outdoor life

Listarumsåsen nature reserve offers hiking on a forested ridge in an otherwise fairly flat and open landscape. There are two shorter trails of about 2-3 km (red-white 1.6 km + yellow 2.8 km but starting about 1 km from the parking lot). At the western parking lot there is a fireplace. Remember to bring charcoal if you are going to grill and to take your garbage home. The Gårdlösaleden Link to another website, opens in new window trail also runs through the reserve. It is a 12 km long nature and culture walk that starts and ends at Smedstorp station. Along the way, there will also be stops for both ship settlements, quarries and lime kilns while passing by the frog-rich nature reserve Ljungavången - one of the rare onion frog's favorite places!

**OBS: The trails in this and several other reserves have been damaged by previous high water flows and storms and are still difficult to access in places. We are trying to fix this as soon as we can, but the work is extensive and takes a long time. We regret this.

In English

Welcome to Listarumsåsen Nature Reserve

Tree-covered Listarumsåsen (Listarum Ridge) is a mighty esker that stretches out in the open plains landscape just north of Smedstorp. Once upon a time, the ridge was covered in open pasture with giant trees. Today, you can walk in a lush woodland filled with bird-songs.

Wooded Ridges and Open Pasture

The eskers in this area were formed by the rivers of melt-water that ran through Skåne when the inland ice sheet melted away. In the 19th century this area was home to Djurabackarne - hills with open, bushy pastures and the occasional wide-crowned tree. Today, the ridges are covered in trees and only small areas of pasture and wet carr remain dotted amongst the woodlands.

A Woodland in Transformation

The woodland that is hundreds of years old, which is dominated by oak and beech, has been allowed to grow freely. It has developed into a woodland area rich in variety, with a large number of bush and tree species. Here you'll find every one of Sweden's native broad-leaved trees.

The woodland will also continue to have the opportunity to develop at its own pace, with trees of varying ages. By retaining dying and dead trees, habitats are created for a large number of lichens, fungi and insects. Within the reserve there are woodlands of varying character, among these are wet birch carr and areas that are dominated by lime.

The Song and Floral Splendor of Spring

Listarum Nature Reserve is at its most beautiful in spring. The ground is covered with a rich spring flora of Liverwort, Yellow Star-of-Bethlehem, Fumewort and the special Lungwort. The woodland is filled with bird-song. The typical songbirds of the broad-leaved woodland such as Blackcap, Wood Warbler, Great Tit, Blue Tit and Nuthatch breed here. The Eurasian Jay comes to visit in autumn, on the hunt for huts and berries.

Listarum Nature Reserve was established in the 1970s in order to protect the ridges from gravel extraction. The reserve consists of three areas that lie within about three kilometers of Listarumsåsen. Because the ridge slopes from north to south, various microclimates are created with variations in temperature and humidity on either slope. This means that you can find interesting differences in the vegetation.

Walk Here on the Gårdslösaleden Trail

The trail that begins in Smedstorp is a 12 km long nature and cultural heritage walk, crossing through two of the areas that make up Listarumsåsen Nature Reserve. As a bonus you also get Ljungavången Nature Reserve, an area in which the rare, threatened common spadefoot toad spawns.

Regulations

Within Listarumsåsen nature reserve, it is prohibited to:

• light fires other than in designated places,
• break branches, cut down or otherwise dama -ge living or dead trees and shrubs or damagevegetation in any other way, for example, bypicking or digging up the flowers and moss,
• let dogs off a leash,
• drive motorized vehicles except on designatedroads and parking areas,
• park vehicles in places other than at designa -ted parking areas,
• camp or stay in caravans,
• use radio equipment, audio equipment, musical instruments or such like, in a manner that can disturb others,
• put up boards, placards, posters, signs, inscriptions, or other comparable apparatus,
• ride other than on the Nature conservation manager's designated riding paths.