Bjursjöaltaret

On the steep, northerly slope facing Bjursjön lake, there is an old, wild spruce forest that has remained undisturbed for such a long time that has acquired the qualities of natural forest. This is the Bjursöaltaret nature reserve.

Old spruces covered with lichen

The trees here are of many different ages, and there is plenty of dead wood on the ground. A large amount of lichen grows on the old spruces, including witch’s horsehair, and the three-toed woodpecker pecks easily recognisable rings into the stems. The dead wood is used by rare fungi such as crust fungus and Fomitopsis rosea. Here and there, you can sometime catch the aroma of anise from the protected Haploporus odorus, which grows on individual old sallows.

Remains of a croft

At Bjursjön you can fine the remains of the Sunnansjö settlement, which once was a croft. The surrounding fields and the courtyard are now almost entirely overgrown, and the area now comprises young deciduous forest.