Ullasjöbäcken, Naturreservat

In the heart of Halmstad municipality's woodlands lies Ullasjöbäcken. The reserve is named after the stream that runs through the deep valley of the reserve. Steep beech forest-covered slopes line the valley on both sides. The reserve has been forested for a long time, maps from the 17th century show that the area was then part of large and continuous beech forests.

Ullasjöbäckens nature reserve is one of southern Sweden's larger reserves and covers 184 hectares. From several places both inside and outside the reserve you can get a breathtaking view of the valley. The village of Ullasjö, located next to the highway northeast of the reserve, and the Stora Hjelmetan and Jättabulten hills on the west side of the valley are some good vantage points.

The beech forest did not become a spruce forest

The beech forests have stood in the same place since the 1800s and, unlike many other places in southern Sweden, the area was spared from being converted to spruce forest during the 1900s. The beech forest in this area therefore has a long history and is a remnant from the time when the broadleaf forests were larger and more unaffected in Halland.

Red-listed species

Some slopes in the west have been spared from forestry interventions for a long time and the beech forest has an untouched character with old trees, self-galvanized stands and elements of dead wood. Other untouched areas are found in ravines and stream beds. It is in these environments that we find most of the reserve's red-listed species.

Lichens in particular are well represented, with 20 red-listed species, including sawfly lichen, common lichen, lung lichen and small noble lichen. Ten red-listed plants and animals have also been found. Among these are the southern broom moss, barley band moss, oak bark fungus, coral tag fungus and lamella snail. If you're lucky, you might spot the red-listed nutcracker with its white-spotted plumage or hear the cooing of the shy wood pigeon.

More than beech forest

In addition to beech forests, the reserve also offers wetlands such as pine bogs, deciduous swamp forests and small lakes, i.e. open marshes that flood in spring and fall. Just above the valley, the two Pors lakes lie in peaceful tranquillity. The lakes are bordered by sedge meadows and gungfly (gungfly is a carpet of living and dead plants, peat, driftwood, etc. floating on the water) with deciduous forests in the background.