Stiby backe, Naturreservat

Stiby backe is one of Listerlandet's remaining mountains. In the nature reserve there are many paths to walk on. In the spring, wood anemones bloom in the dry meadows and bluebells in the hornbeam forest. The top of the mountain is 70 meters above sea level. From here you have an extensive view of Kråkenabben, Listershuvud and Hanö.

From the community of Hällevik, several paths lead to the summit through deciduous forest with hornbeam and beech, as well as over dry meadows and rocky areas. There are grazing animals in the pastures. The large number of habitats in the area provides a rich animal and plant life. The reserve is also geologically interesting.

Restberg

Stibyberget has an interesting geology. It rises significantly above the plains of Listerlandet. The mountain has a fairly large plateau 60 meters above sea level. The bedrock consists of coarse eye granite of the Karlshamn type. The mountain is a remnant mountain, which already existed in the Cretaceous period, 100 million years ago. Cretaceous deposits from the tropical seas of that time are found in the mountain's surroundings.

Memories of the Ice Age

During the last ice age, the residual mountains were given their final shape by the grinding of the rock core. Most of the highest parts of the mountain are flat, extensive outcrops. The outcrops contain ice grooves that run in the direction of the ice sheet.

South-southwest of the mountain is a drumlin, a streamlined formation formed by the movement of the ice sheet. The side facing the ice movement (here in the north) is called the impact side and it was smoothed as the ice slid over it. On the opposite side, the leeward side, loose till material accumulated. On Stiby backe, till has been deposited as large blocks on both sides and south of the rock core. The reserve includes large parts of the residual rock, but only a small part of the drumlin formation, which is 4 km long and 1.3 km wide.

After the ice sheet melted, the land began to rise. This gradually formed terraces on the eastern side of the mountain and embankments on its south-western side, here at between 48 and 31 meters above sea level.

From burial sites to quarries

Not far from the summit are burial mounds from the Bronze Age, 3,800 - 2,500 years ago. In the southern part of the reserve there is a cholera burial ground where some of the 50 victims of the 1853 cholera epidemic on Listerlandet rest. The reserve also contains other cultural-historical remains such as quarries, old road systems, stone walls in borders and fences and stone foundations for a mill. Along the eastern boundary of the reserve is a lane and old road with stone walls on both sides. The old road is now widely used as a hiking trail.

Rich plant and bird life

Northeast of the summit of Stibyberget, the soil is nutrient-rich and a hornbeam forest grows here with ivy winding around several of the trunks. In spring, the flora is at its richest, with a variety of primroses, spring onions and violets. Later in the year, typical broadleaf woodland plants such as woodland bells and starflower appear. The marshes grow chafing grass. Hazel is abundant, under a canopy of old oak and beech and in pastures. Pine is also present. The dry meadows are home to wood anemone, wood anemone, gray saxifrage and yellow feverfew. In the pastures you can see wood anemone, bloodroot, coneflower, various clover species, meadow carnation and meadow celandine. In the groves, you will find desm bud, goat's beard, cowslip, little nunwort and common nunwort. Large parts of the area are pasture.

The reserve has a rich small bird life with woodlark, nightingale and a large number of warblers, including hawk warbler. There are two key biotopes in the eastern parts of the reserve. One consists of mixed broadleaf forest and swamp forest on calcareous soil. The other has nutritious hornbeam-dominated forest.