unesco world natural heritage

E X P E R I E N C E N AT U R E
P R O T E C T N AT U R E
UNESCO World Heritage
Kellerwald | 1467 hectares
Hesse | Kellerwald-Edersee National Park | 5,700 hectares |
Hainich | 1573 hectares
Thuringia | Hainich National Park | 7,500 hectares |
www.nationalpark-hainich.de
The most valuable beech forests that offer a very rich range
of species grow on the central mountain ranges on limestone.
It impresses through its extensive range of tree species and
reveals lime beech forests of a magnitude, unspoilt nature
and form that you will be unable to find in any other area.
Wonderful carpets of blossoms on the forest floor in the
spring and lively autumnal colouring due to the rich range
of tree species enchant visitors. In addition to the typical
plant and animal species that are typical for mixed deciduous
forests, very specialised species such as wild cat, Bechstein‘s
bat, middle spotted woodpecker, saproxylic beetles that are in
great danger of extinction, orchids and numerous species of
fungi can also be found here.
Mecklenburg-West Pomerania | Müritz National Park | 32,200 hectares |
www.mueritz-nationalpark.de
In the Serrahn part of the forest of the Müritz National
Park lowland beech forests grow on sands from the ice age.
In the midst of an extended forest and lake landscape this
old beech forest helps us to imagine what the German beech
forests once looked like. Lakes and moors enrich the forest
landscape, create a rich diversity of habitats and form the
basis for a great amount of biodiversity.
The red deer is the biggest mammal to roam through this
nature reserve. Rare large birds such as the bittern and the
crane are typically found here and white tailed eagle and
osprey have their largest breeding density in central Europe
here. In the old forests of Serrahn there is an impressive
and large variety of insect and
fungi species that live on dead wood.
Jasmund | 493 hectares
Mecklenburg-West Pomerania | Jasmund National Park | 3,102 hectares |
www.nationalpark-jasmund.de
Jasmund represents the beech forests of the lowlands on lime
and boulder clay. Beech forests, chalk cliffs and sea form a
fascinating backdrop. The beech forest appears to be literally
plunging into the sea at the chalk cliff.
The harsh coastal climate and the interaction of topography
and climate lead to a broad range of different beech forest
communities which are interspersed with streams and moors.
They form the basis for a large range of animal and plant
species. Rare orchids, the great horsetail and the coral root
are typical here. Peregrine falcon breeds here along with
other birds on the slopes of the chalk cliff and the house
martin settles here in large colonies. The white tailed eagle is
a regular breeding bird.
The acidophilous beech forests of the lower mountain ranges
grow on slate and greywacke in the Kellerwald. No roads
and no settlements cut through the exceptionally old,
extensive forests of the Kellerwald in which unique primeval
forest relics have survived. The beech reaches its natural
forest boundary at the rocky and scree slopes and forms a
bizarrely formed forest landscape. More than 500 of the
purest springs and streams form additional valuable habitats.
Visitors will find a rich range of living communities that are
typical in deciduous forests with numerous rare species.
Eagle owl, red kite and black stork breed here, numerous
woodpecker and bat species demonstrate the structural
diversity of the forests. The cheddar pink and rare beetles
which are considered to be primeval forest species rank
among the outstanding special
features here.
Extensive silicate beech forests in the Kellerwald-Edersee National Park
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Forest and water in Grumsin
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Serrahn | 268 hectares
Beech forest at the steep chalk cliff coastline in the Jasmund National Park
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www.nationalpark-kellerwald-edersee.de
Significant lowland beech forest in the Müritz National Park
Grumsin | 590 hectares
Brandenburg | UNESCO Biosphere Reserve Schorfheide-Chorin |
129,000 hectares | www.schorfheide-chorin.de
Grumsin represents the beech forests of the lowlands on
glacial sands and clay. Visitors will find the greatest still
connected lowland beech forests in the biosphere reserve.
Water and forests are closely linked in Grumsin.
Lakes, forest marshes and moores in deep valleys interchange
with marked ridges and conjure up atmospheric forest
images in the ancient beech forests.
These different structures in the most confined spaces form
the basis for an exceptionally rich range
of animal and plant species.
A lot of beetle species that are in acute
danger of extinction live in the dead wood of
old beech forests.
On 16 November 1972 the “Convention concerning the
protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage” was
adopted at the 17th General Conference of UNESCO. It
came into force in 1975 and 187 states throughout the world
have now ratified this agreement. The guiding principle of
this agreement is “the consideration that parts of the Cultural
or Natural Heritage are of outstanding interest and therefore
need to be preserved as part of the World Heritage of mankind as a whole.“ The World Heritage Sites thus do not solely
belong to the respective state but should ideally be seen as the
property of the entire human race. World Natural Heritage
are unique natural phenomena, World Cultural Heritage are
unique human cultural achievements. The old part of Cracow
city, the Galapagos Islands were among the first World Heritage sites and the first German site was the Aachen Cathedral.
Currently (2011) the World Heritage List contains
936 Cultural and Natural Sites, including 36 in Germany.
Cultural Sites dominate the World Heritage List, particularly
in Germany and Europe. In addition to the Ancient Beech
Forests, the Messel Pit fossil site and the Wadden Sea are also
UNESCO World Natural Heritage Sites in Germany.
Additional information is available at:
www.weltnaturerbe-buchenwälder.de
Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians
and Ancient Beech Forests of Germany
UNESCO WORLD
NATURAL HERITAGE
White tailed eagle, black stork and crane are ornitholo­gical
highlights here. The common tree frog benefits from the
numerous small water bodies. Sundew and cotton grass can
be found in the moors.
October 2011
C O N S E R V E N AT U R E
U N D E R S TA N D N AT U R E
D I S C O V E R N AT U R E
E X P E R I E N C E N AT U R E
European beech forests
European beech forests are an outstanding
example of the process of reforestation of large
areas of Central Europe following the ice age,
the process that continues to this day.
Beech forests in Germany
Serrahn
Hainich
UNESCO World Natural
Heritage “Primeval Beech
Forests of the Carpathians
and Ancient Beech Forests
of Germany”
Kellerwald
Primeval Beech
Forests of the
Carpathians
Natural distribution of beech forests in Europe
“Ancient Beech Forests of Germany“ have been listed on
the UNESCO World Heritage List since June 2011.
The most valuable remnants of natural ancient beech forests
now form a joint World Heritage Site together with the
UNESCO World Natural Heritage Site of “Primeval Beech
Forests of the Carpathians” in the Ukraine and the Slovak
Republic that has been inscribed in 2007.
The areas in question are the selected forest areas of the
National Parks of Jasmund and Müritz in Mecklenburg-West
Pomerania, Hainich in Thuringia, Kellerwald-Edersee
in Hesse and the Biosphere Reserve of Schorfheide-Chorin
in Brandenburg. These German sites with their beech forests
in the lowlands and central uplands are a perfect complement
to the mountain beech forests located in the Carpathians.
The joint World Heritage Site thus reflects virtually the
entire range of beech forest types in Europe from the seashore
to the mountain timberline and at the most diverse locations.
The cooperation between Germany, the Ukraine and the
Slovak Republic is exemplary. They have and continue to
jointly work on the conservation and management of the
15 component parts.
The joint World Natural Heritage site is
an exceptional example of natural deciduous
forests and is indispensable in order to
understand the historical development of
the forests that are dominated by beech.
The decision of the World Heritage Committee on
25 June 2011 for inscription on the UNESCO World
Heritage List emphasises the efforts at conserving the beech
forests as the World Heritage Committee has linked it to
form a pan-European process by means of this commitment.
The conservation and adoption of additional valuable
European beech forests within the joint World Heritage
Site should be secured in the future. Germany, the Slovak
Republic and the Ukraine will work hard to achieve this.
Deciduous forests that are dominated by common beech
trees (Fagus sylvatica) are only to be found in Europe.
Beech forests would shape the landscape of the whole of
central Europe without the influence of humans.
Due to its major ecological potency the beech has occupied
large sections of Europe from its small retreats in the south
and south east of Europe following the ice age. This dominance developed within the last 4,000 years – viewed in
geological and evolutionary terms this is an extremely short
period of time.
This ecological process is still ongoing! The beech is still in
the process of spreading. This is a globally unique example
of the fact that a unique species of tree can proliferate and
dominate extending a large area.
An exceptional diversity of forest communities has
developed due to the fact that the beech can be found at the
most diverse locations. They offer living space for more than
10,000 animal, plant and fungi species. They thus make up
an essential portion of the biological diversity of the temperate climate zones of the earth.
Beech forest habitat
The history of the beech forests is closely linked with the
history of European civilisation.
The post-glacial colonisation of the landscape by the beech
tree ran in parallel with the establishment of communities
by mankind and the formation of more highly organised
forms of society.
That is why the beech is deeply rooted in European culture.
German words such as “Buch” (from Buche) or „Buchstabe“
but also the name of approx. 1,500 towns and villages in
Germany, can be traced back to the name of the beech tree.
Ancient beech forest that rich in species and structures
Germany is at the centre of distribution of the beech
forests. If nature had its way they would cover approx.
two thirds of the land area of Germany extending
from the Alps over high and low mountain ranges and
down to the lowlands at the sea coastlines.
Now only approx. seven per cent of this surface is covered
with beech forests due to deforestation and forest conversion.
Larger contiguous forest areas are rare. The remaining forests
are used in the forestry industry and beeches of approx.
120 years of age are harvested.
The senescent and decay phases of a lifecycle that is naturally
of more than 300 years duration are absent and thus also the
living spaces that emerge in these phases such as tree hollows
and dead wood with their typical biocoenosis.
Primeval beech forests have long since disappeared barring
a few miniscule remnants and with them also species that are
dependent upon them.
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A covering of wild garlic in the fresh limestone beech forest (Hainich National Park)
Grumsin
The component parts of the World Natural
Heritage represent the characteristics and the
natural processes of European beech forests
under various ecological conditions.
Uholka Primeval Beech Forest in the Carpathian mountains
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Jasmund
The 15 component parts
of the UNESCO World
Heritage Site
Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians | 29,297 hectares
Ukraine | 6 areas in the Carpathians Biosphere Reserve and in the Uzhanskyi
National Park | http://cbr.nature.org.ua/main.htm | Slovak Republic | 3 areas in
the Poloniny National Park and the protected landscape area Vihorlat
The last extensive primeval beech forests can now only be found
in the Carpathians. This is the only place where you can still
experience the uninterrupted dynamics of the coming and decline of beech forests since the last ice age. Mighty beeches, some
of them more than 50 m high, dominate the forest profile with
its varied structure. The great biodiversity of the beech forests
has managed to endure here. The World Heritage Site “Primeval
Beech Forests of the Carpathians“ was already inscribed in 2007
and represents the beech forests of the mountain range in ten
component parts. Four areas are located in the Slovak Republic,
six are located in the Ukraine. The smallest area is 67 hectares
in size, the largest 12,000 hectares. They are located in the
eastern Carpathians, one of the most unspoilt habitats in Europe.
All the component parts are remnants of primeval forests which
are embedded in beech forests that are extensively managed.