Grīņu Nature Reserve

Coordinates: 56°48′10″N 21°12′18″E / 56.80278°N 21.20500°E / 56.80278; 21.20500
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Grīņu Nature Reserve
cross-leaved heath (Erica tetralix) - the main object of protection in the Grīņu Nature Reserve.
Map showing the location of Grīņu Nature Reserve
Map showing the location of Grīņu Nature Reserve
Location Latvia
Nearest cityPāvilosta
Coordinates56°48′10″N 21°12′18″E / 56.80278°N 21.20500°E / 56.80278; 21.20500
Area15.05 km2 (1,505 ha)[1]
Established1936
Governing bodyEnvironmental Protection Board

Grīņu Nature Reserve (

natural habitat are under protection.[1] The Grīņu Reserve is subordinated to the Regional Council for Nature Conservation Courland.[2]

The nature reserve was created to protect a very rare for Latvia plant -

sweet gale (Myrica gale) have been preserved, an endangered species of shrubs, source of raw materials to make the famous Riga Black Balsam
. Other rare plants, in particular, several species of orchids, have been found in the flora of the reserve.

History

The oldest information about the lands of Grīnis is contained in folklore. According to legend, Baron Osten-Sacken, who lived here in the 17th century, divided the estate between two sons, one bequeathed the fields, and the other - forests. The owner of the forests became wealthy, and the owner of the fields became poor and set fire to the forest out of envy. Thus appeared the first heather wasteland - grīnis.[4]

In the nineteenth century, attempts to seize these lands by fire did not stop. Locals burned grass to increase fertility, but after several years of use, such fields ceased to yield, and villagers again set fire to the forest to capture new land. Despite the irrationality of such use of nature, even foresters resorted to piles when they wanted to replace low-growing crooked forests with cultivated forest plantations. Sometimes fires broke out due to steam locomotives running on the paved railway line. In summer, the grīnis was extremely dry, so one spark from under the wheels was enough to spread the fire.

However, all human efforts to develop local lands were unsuccessful. Grīņu remained barren, and as soon as people stopped cultivating the land, they quickly overgrown with wild vegetation. Until the 1930s, the core of the modern Grīņu Reserve (about 750 hectares) was a small, but not very productive forest, bordered by unforested swamps. This area belonged to the Strautini forestry, subordinated to the Land Fund, which sold individual plots to anyone. However, due to the infertility of local lands, they were bought by only 60 poor Latgalian families, who lived by cutting down trees for sale.

Documents from the Latvian Forest Department for 1936 contain information that large thickets of

cross-leaved heath (Erica tetralix) were found in the Strautini forestry. Since the main area of this species is in Western Europe, this kind of find has become a sensation in the circles of Latvian botanists.[5] Scientists University of Latvia opposed the economic use of Grīņu's forests, and all land reclamation work and tree felling were immediately stopped. In the same year the territory was bequeathed, thus Grīņu became the third protected territory of the country after the Moricsala Nature Reserve and Slītere National Park.[6]

During World War II and in the first years thereafter, Grīņu's forests were virtually left unattended. In 1957, these areas were again declared a nature reserve. Over the next 20 years, new areas were added to this area, where heather thickets were found so that the protected area increased to 1076 ha. In 1979, the Grīņu Reserve, while remaining a separate conservation institution, was administratively subordinated to the Slītere National Park. Since February 1, 2011, it has been managed by the Nature Protection Council of the Courland Regional Office.

Climate

The Grīņu Nature Reserve is located on the coast of

atmospheric precipitation falls here during the year, and most of it occurs at the end of summer and autumn. Instead, winters in Grīņu are light snow with a thin and fragile layer of snow. Strong winds often blow in this area, especially in autumn, they often cause the felling of large trees.[6]

Geography and hydrology

Grīņu Nature Reserve is located in the Saka Parish of the Pāvilosta Municipality of Latvia, to the west from village Ķoniņciems [lv], between settlements Ziemupe [lv], Saka and Pāvilosta. The strips of land adjacent to its borders are occupied by forests of the same type as in the reserve itself, so the boundaries between the reserve and the exploited areas are invisible. Such underused farmland contributes to the preservation of Grīņu's landscapes, essentially acting as a buffer zone. The eastern edge of the protected area is crossed from north to south by a Liepāja–Ventspils Railway, traffic on which was stopped in 1996.[7]

The territory of the reserve lies on

riverbed you can see wetlands. Mazā Kārpa has impassable, swampy shores and is more like a reclamation canal than a river.[6] At the end of the 20th century, it included Lake Grīņu with an area of 2 ha, but due to eutrophic processes its water surface is constantly decreasing.[7]

Soils and landscapes

The entire territory of the Grīņu Reserve is lined with a thick three-meter layer of fine-grained

podzolic
soils are formed on the elevated places along the banks of the Lielā Kārpa, and peat-clay soils. However, there are no conditions for the formation of a thick layer of peat in the reserve because all the low-lying areas receive excess moisture in the cold season, and in summer completely dry up.

Homogeneity

soil cover determines the uniformity of the landscape of the reserve: 94% of its territory is covered with forests, 5% are meadows and shrubs and heathers; falls on the former cultivated lands.[6]
Grīņu's scenery cannot be called breathtaking. Most of the territory is occupied by low and sparse forests, only on the elevated banks of the river Lielā Kārpa tall slender pines with elegant spruces grow to a limited extent.

Open

biocenosis and Grīņu include natural meadows and wastelands, confined to the former hayfields, gardens, cemeteries. It is the meadows, overgrown with heather and shrubs, called grīnis. This landscape is not typical for the Eastern Baltic, so it is carefully protected. Scientists have not yet reached a definitive conclusion about the origin of grīnis. Some consider it a natural biotope formed in unique local conditions, others suggest that the development of grīnis is closely related to human activities, in particular, fires, because without the influence of this factor grīnis quickly overgrown with forest.[4]

Flora

The value of the Grīņu Nature Reserve is that, despite the uniformity of landscapes, it is characterized by botanical diversity.

vascular plants have been found in its territory, including 33 - rare for Latvia.[7]
Approximately 80% of the reserve is covered with pine and birch woodlands with continuous shrub or
moor grass (Molinia
) are common between the hummocks.

Plant communities
of Grīņu reserve can be clearly divided into two types: forests and meadows.

Forest flora

Forest

lingonberry (Vaccinium vitis-idaea).[4]

Moist meadows flora

broad leaved cotton grass (Eriophorum latifolium
).

The

purple moor-grass (Molinia caerulea), both in forests and meadows, forms the characteristic rounded mounds.[4]

Dry meadows flora

A separate type of plant groups of open places are species of dry meadows. They grow on small areas that were once cultivated. Several species of

yellow toadflax (Linaria vulgaris).[4]

Protected and rare flora

sweet gale (Myrica gale
).

Calluna vulgaris) and blooms at the same time.[4]

Another object of protection -

sweet gale (Myrica gale) - in Grīņu reserve is very common. Its fragrant buds are used to prepare the famous Riga Black Balsam, due to which this shrub quickly disappears. On the territory of the reserve such preparations are prohibited and the population of waxwort is in excellent condition.[4]

Among other rare plants, ornamental species such as

creeping willow (Salix repens).[4]

Fauna

Fauna of the Grīņu Reserve has been little studied. The reason for this is both the botanical focus of conservation activities and the small size of the protected area, which does not allow to maintain large animal populations within its boundaries. Species found in the reserve belong to

Nyctereutes procyonoides), enter the reserve.[11]

Among the birds of Grīņu are almost ubiquitous

Ciconia nigra) have been observed.[11] A total of 16 species of native birds belong to the rare species.[7]

Economic and scientific activity

As already mentioned in the "History" section, people have been trying to manage the lands of the reserve for a long time, but practically no branch of either agriculture or forestry here had any prospects for development. Cultivated lands were infertile, more or less acceptable on them gave birth only

potatoes. At the same time, the cultivation of arable land took a long time, given that they first had to be freed from forest and snags. Pastures were of no value, as marsh plants were generally not very nutritious fodder for cattle. Only deforestation was profitable, but attempts to plant groves of black alder
and birch in place of low-grade pines were also unsuccessful.

Including because of this, the establishment of the reserve regime was quick and without complications. Already in the year of the founding of the Grīņu Nature Reserve, it was forbidden to cut down trees, graze cattle and drain wetlands. The lands of the reserve were finally depopulated after the Second World War, as most of the local Latgalians were deported or emigrated. Over time, such neglect led to the rapid renewal of stands, around the farms began to grow

sweet gale (Myrica gale). Indirectly on Ecosystems
,Grīņu land has reclamation measures in the surrounding lands, which since the second half of the 20th century has led to a marked eutrophication of water bodies and swamps.

Currently, the reserve has a strict protection regime, the free crossing of borders by outsiders is prohibited, and for scientific purposes it can be visited only with the permission of the staff of the Slytherin National Park. In the buffer zone of the reserve it is allowed to change the vegetation in the framework of scientific experiments (for example, to conduct test piles). Also in the Grīņu Reserve are partially preserved objects of historical heritage of Latgalians: the cemetery, the buildings of the village "Ceriņi" [7]

The first research of this territory was carried out by

bequest was made only in the late 1930s.[7] In the 1950s, J. Gailis began a systematic study of grīnis. He conducted several interesting experiments on its afforestation, studied soils, types and structure of vegetation. During the same period, other Latvian foresters occasionally joined the study of grīnis. In 1984, M.Lavins described in detail the history of the reserve [11]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Grīņu Dabas Rezervāts Protected Planet
  2. ^ Grīņu dabas rezervāts
  3. ^ Grīnis - a peculiar type of vegetation in the Latvian SSR / Gailis I. // Bot. Journal. - 1957. - Vol.42., No. ; 2 - P. 81-111.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Reserves of the USSR: in 11 volumes / ed. V.E. Sokolova, E.E. Syroechkovskogo. - M .: Mysl, 1989.- T. Zapovedniki Pribaltiki i Belorussii. - S. 162—168.
  5. ^ Ādolfs Krauklis Heaths in Landscapes of Britain and Latvia in Nature Research pages 31-57 1999
  6. ^ a b c d e Reserves of the USSR: in 11 vols. ed. V.E. Sokolova, E.E. Syroechkovskogo. - M .: Mysl, 1989. T. Zapovedniki Pribaltiki i Belorussii.- S. 158—160.
  7. ^ a b c d e f Grīnis. - Grīņu: an illustrated overview. - Cited May 27, 2017.
  8. ^ Typological characteristics of grīnis and methods of its afforestation / Gailis I. // Proceedings of the Institute of Forestry Problems. - Riga, 1956. - T.XI. - P. 81-111.
  9. ^ Classification (and lichenization & de-lichenization) Australian National Botanic Gardens and Australian National Herbarium, Canberra.
  10. ^ Rosemary-leaved Willow (Salix rosmarinifolia) iNaturalist.ca
  11. ^ a b c Reserves of the USSR: in 11 volumes / ed. V.E. Sokolova, E.E. Syroechkovskogo. - M .: Mysl, 1989. - T. Zapovedniki Pribaltiki i Belorussii. - S. 168—169.
  12. ^ Herbarium Details. University of Latvia New York Botanical Garden
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