Summary

Ochrana přírody 2/2025 — 29. 4. 2025 — Summary — Tištěná verze článku v pdf

SUMMARY – Ochrana přírody 2/2025

Pešout P. & Koukal S.: The Soutok/Morava and Dyje/Thaya Rivers Confluence Protected Landscape Area Declared

By Decree of the Government of the Czech Republic approved 15 January 2025, the Soutok/ Morava and Dyje/Thaya Rivers Confluence Protected Landscape Area (PLA) located in South Moravia was declared the 27th Protected Landscape Area in the Czech Republic. The floodplain landscape in the area of the confluence of the Morava and Dyje/Thaya Rivers has been proposed for protection since the middle of the last century. Since then, the area has been negatively affected by intensive farming and dramatic changes in the water regime due to water management. In spite of this, it has still been harbouring a unique landscape with a concentrated extraordinary natural and cultural heritage, which has led to its inclusion on many prestigious European and world lists in recent decades. The Soutok/Morava and Dyje/Thaya Rivers Confluence PLA consists of a complex of floodplain forests, meadows and a dense network of watercourses, dead and disused, permanent and periodically flowing channels, canals and pools. The confluence is a valuable example of wild animal communities associated with the large river floodplain. Displaying 676 documented saproxylic beetle species, the Soutok/Morava and Dyje/Thaya Rivers Confluence PLA is one of the most important areas in the whole of Central Europe in this respect. Almost half of the butterfly species (1,670) known from the whole Czech Republic´s territory have been recorded there. The rich spider fauna is mainly related to the hrúdy (native tops of sand dunes the vicinity of which was step-by-step infilled with deposits made by floods). The area is also a hotspot for dragonflies (52 species). Unique fish communities have developed there, and the area is extremely valuable also for amphibians. In total, 249 bird species are known from the floodplain landscape. Therefore, the Soutok/Morava and Dyje/Thaya Rivers Confluence PLA protects a unique floodplain landscape with an unusually high biodiversity.    ■

 

Horal D.: Birds of Prey of the Floodplain Landscape at the Soutok/Morava and Dyje/Thaya Rivers Confluence

The Soutok/Morava and Dyje/Thaya Rivers Confluence Protected Landscape Area (PLA) situated in South Moravia is one of the Czech Repubic´s most important areas for birds of prey at least in Central Europe. The nesting sites and the place of large numerical concentrations of two eagle species and both of kite species (Milvus spp.) occurring in the Czech Republic have attracted the attention of ornithologists, birdwatchers and raptor fans for almost a hundred years. The first findings about birds of prey in this area were published by the founding fathers of South Moravian ornithology as early as in the 1940s. At least ten species of birds of prey regularly nest in the Soutok/ Morava and Dyje/Thaya Rivers Confluence PLA, three more species reproduce in its immediate surroundings so that they would at least occasionally breed in the PLA itself (the Western marsh harrier Circus aeruginosus, the Montagu´s harrier Circus pygargus and the Saker falcon Falco cherrug). Eight species occur regularly on the flyway or during the winter, and four species are either only historically recorded or have occurred recently but literally exceptionally there. From the point of view of raptor protection and conservation, it is important that most of the area is located in the hunting grounds owned and managed by the Forests of the Czech Republic, state enterprise, namely by the Židlochovice Forest Enterprise. The fact reduces the possibility of conflict with game management and hunting because it focuses on the keeping hoofed game, not small game. Thus, there is no direct persecution of raptors (shooting, poisoning), as we know from other, mainly hunting grounds in farmland.    ■

Vrška T.: Fewer Trees More Trees for Everyone

In connection with the declaration of the Soutok/ Morava and Dyje/Thaya Rivers Confluence Protected Landscape Area (PLA), South Moravia, it will be necessary to define management methods graded according to nature conservation zones, particularly in forests as the most extensive ecosystem occurring there. In Zone III and partly in Zone II, one of the future management models may also be that of value-added increment oak management, which may replace the current clearcutting oak management. The model will not reduce the yield from forest management for the Forests of the Czech Republic, state enterprise (the manager of the majority of the forests in the new PLA). At the same time, it can enhance the diversity of the environment and provide better conditions for supporting the biodiversity for which the Soutok// Morava and Dyje/Thaya Rivers Confluence PLA was designated. The Pedunculate oak or English oak (Quercus robur) is the most important commercial/production tree species of the South Moravian floodplains and it also is a woody plant species supporting a very specific biodiversity, especially if the oaks are solitary or marginal individuals. The model is not a groundbreaking discovery, it has been applied for a long time, most notably in France, and can be used as a model on many estates. The transition to the value increment model is slow, and there is no point in experimenting with it in stands older than 80 years - the trees will invariably produce a lot of excrescences from the tree trunk because, due to their higher density per unit area, they have small, narrow, elongated crowns and cannot overcome the stress caused by opening the canopy. On the other hand, it can be safely implemented in all existing stands under 50 years of age, while a more cautious approach should be taken in stands 50-80 years of age with regard to the production of excrescences by the stem. Today, in the South Moravian floodplains, the oak clear-cut/main felling stands are harvested that were established by the Liechtenstein foresters. None of today’s protagonists of the change in forest management will live to see the outcome of the transformation, but it has been known that this model works elsewhere and we need not fear an experiment with an unknown end.    ■

Keeping reserved trees on clearings is important for enhancing forest biodiversity there.  Photo by Vladan Riedl

Havlíček T. & Stachoňová B.: Restoration of the Structure and Water Regime of the Valley Floodplains at the Confluence of the Morava and Dyje/Thaya Rivers

The water management modifications in South Moravia carried out in the 1970s and 1980s provided some benefits, but also resulted into drastic changes in the original conditions and characteristics of the area and caused enormous environmental damage, either by direct destruction of valuable habitats or by affecting the water regime there. The designation of the Soutok/ Morava and Dyje/Thaya Rivers Confluence Protected Landscape Area (PLA) increases the chances of repairing the damage. Most of the difficulties are known and described in various background materials. Several studies and projects have already been elaborated to address them, but they are fragmented. As part of the study, the authors taken them on board, critically evaluated, incorporated and coordinated them with other proposals. Most of the proposals included in the study have thus already been included into both the river basin management plans and the Territorial Development Principles of the South Moravian Region. The Austrian and Slovakian partners are preparing joint restoration measures on the Morava River border below the confluence. Thus, the agreements with Slovakia and Austria need to be updated as soon as possible and a coordinated approach is needed. In the next phases, it will be necessary to establish the phasing of the activities and to define individual investment or administrative actions as a basis for the systematic implementation of the proposals. The principal task is to ensure that these plans do not remain on paper. Virtual water is neither drinkable nor does it meet the needs of ecosystems.    ■

Riedl V. & Dedek P.: How to Ensure the Maintenance of Populations of Species Associated with Old-growth Trees at the Soutok/ Morava and Dyje/Thaya Rivers Confluence

The area above the confluence of the Morava and Dyje/Thaya Rivers (South Moravia) is unique in many respects including saproxylic and xylophagous insect species. What most of the xylobiont insects threatened with extinction display as common is a preference for wood fully or at least partially sunlit. The microclimate inside the wood plays an important role in larval development. Groves are among the most threatened habitats in Europe. The area of groves at the confluence of the Morava and Dyje/Thaya Rivers has declined from more than 3,000 ha to less than 500 ha between 1938 and 2009 alone. The first of the measures being implemented to mitigate the negative impacts on species associated with sunlit trunks is keeping reserved trees there. Since 2007, reserved trees have been left on the restored areas at a rate of tens of individuals per hectare. Over 18 years, more than 12,000 trees have been left in floodplain forests. By clearing the vegetation around the edge trees, a generation of isolated, standing solitary trees adapted to sunlight can be provided relatively quickly, thus having been vital and attractive. In oak stands with more than 50% being just oak, restoration is carried out over 60 years by agreement, with four successive harvests during this period. Approx. 30-40% of the trees should be removed in the first intervention. It also is important to release the old trees in the growths. The team from the Institute of Entomology of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic found almost 12,000 of them in the floodplain forests at the Soutok/ Morava and Dyje/Thaya Rivers Confluence. Oak, ash, willow and elm trees are the most common among them. However, the key to produce trees with a massive crown are young stands up to 80 years old, which need to be carefully handled. It is necessary to replace the loss of standing solitary trees in meadows with new plantings. A non-intervention regime is supposed to be implemented in part of the forest areas there. Stands left without active management are attractive to saproxylic insects mainly because of the amount of dead wood in various stages of decay. Parks are a specific habitat particularly important for xylobionts following changes in forest management. The famous castle park in the municipality of Lednice has a privileged position in this respect.     ■

Dying and dead old trees, especially oaks, provide an irreplaceable habitat for some specially protected invertebrate species. Photo by Jan Miklín

Sychra J., Bojková J. & Janáč M.: Does Building Pools Contribute to Biodiversity Conservation in Farmland?

Solving problems of wetland loss and degradation has currently been almost exclusively limited to the construction of new pools, ponds and reservoirs. This is a specific Czech way of approaching the aquatic habitat restoration. In the neighbouring countries, there has never been such a boom in building new pools as in the Czech Republic. According to the standard elaborated by the Nature Conservation Agency of the Czech Republic, man-made/artificial pools are supposed to fulfil the objectives of promoting nature conservation, especially strengthening and enhancing biological diversity. Research on wetlands in the agricultural landscape conducted by the authors is carried out in South Moravia where dredging of pools and reservoirs is a huge phenomenon. Between 2009 and 2023, more than 600 new small water bodies were built there, including more than 490 pools at a total cost of CZK 1.36 billion (EUR 54 million). In terms of investments in aquatic ecosystems, projects for the construction of pools, i.e. water bodies without outlet facilities, were the most common, together with the construction of water reservoirs with outlets (effectively fishponds). The problem arises especially when pools are planned and built on valuable habitats. A survey of more than 120 sites across South Moravia has shown that new pools face a number of difficulties, the most pressing of which are poor, sometimes appalling, water quality, lack of management resulting in rapid reed growth and early colonisation by fish, particularly invasive alien ones. If we want to help bring back water and with it wetland habitats and their biodiversity, change should start with a different set of rules aimed at better practice, in particular taking into account the current character of the sites, allowing the establishing dry habitats and pools with outlets in case of polluted water or overpopulated invasive alien fish, and, above all, clear support for other types of ecosystem restoration fully respecting the needs of the particular site.    ■

Antonín V., Lepšová A., Matějka K. & Zíbarová L.: Fungi - Macromycetes of Floodplain Forests at the Confluence of the Morava and Dyje/Thaya Rivers

The floodplain forests at the confluence of the Morava and Dyje/Thaya Rivers (South Moravia) are one of the most important complexes of semi-natural floodplain forests and floodplain meadows in the Czech Republic. The area is known for occurrence of very rare fungi species, which are often found only there across the whole Czech Republic. The species composition of fungi communities in the floodplain forests provides a certain standard against which findings from other areas of floodplain forests along lowland rivers are compared: the Litovelské Pomoraví/Litovel Morava River Basin, remnants of floodplain forests in the Polabí/Elbe River Basin and the Poodří/Odra River Basin. In the context of the efforts to declare the area of the confluence of the Dyje/Thaya and Morava Rivers as a Protected Landscape Area, project entitled “Monitoring of biodiversity and ecological changes of floodplain forests and meadows in the area of the confluence of the Dyje/Thaya and Morava Rovers” was implemented in 2021-2023, financially supported by the Forests of the Czech Republic, state enterprise. The current list of all fungi (macromycetes) historically found there includes a total of 952 taxa. Of these, 179 taxa are ectomycorrhizal and 225 saprotrophic, which are associated with dead vegetation, soil humus or small woody debris. The most common species are lignicolous, preferring decaying wood and wounded trees, with 541 species. Lignicolous species account for 56.8% of all the recorded species. In terms of fungal conservation, 152 of the species found there are included in the Red List of Threatened Species of the Czech Republic, thus reaching 14% of the total number. Of the indicator species for the softwood floodplain forests, 26 fungal species (83.9%) were found at the Confluence and 46 species (95.8%) were recorded in the hardwood floodplain forests there. All the results confirm the high quality of the local vegetation and the fact that the floodplain forests in particular are extremely valuable sites from a mycological point of view.    ■

The Morava River bed has been technologically modified in the Soutok (Morava and Dyje/Thaya Rivers Confluence) Protected Landscape Area (South Moravia). Photo by Romana Veselá

Marešová E., Halačka K., Vetešník L. & Mendel J.: Genetic analysis of the Brown Trout in the Brdy Highlands Protected Landscape Area or Are the Brdy Highlands All Very Much the Same?

The aim of the study was to assess the genetic status of the Brown Trout (Salmo trutta morpha fario) populations in the Brdy Highlands Protected Landscape Area (Central Bohemia) and to identify fragments of its original or otherwise unique populations. The population parameters found demonstrated their successful genetic status and did not confirm either the historical population declines or the dangerous level of inbreeding. Statistical analyses divided the 13 populations into six groups, which correspond to the history of fishery management at the Brdy Highlands sites. The unique position of three populations in the Pilský, Pstruhový and Obecnický Brooks, which are genetically homogeneous and represent three unique sources of Brown trout´s genetic variability in the Brdy PLA, was clearly demonstrated. At the same time, they enhance the unique gene pool of the Brown trout in the Czech Republic. Their homogeneity is probably due to population isolation and the historical and current absence of intensive fisheries management. The different genetic profile of the populations should be taken into account in future manipulations and intended fish stock transfers    ■

Salašová A., Dohnalová B., Lacina D. & Kohoutková K.: Landscape Character/Scenery Values in the Soutok/ Morava and Dyje/Thaya Rivers Confluence and Recommendations for Their Conservation

The landscape at the confluence of the Morava and Dyje/Thaya Rivers (South Moravia) is unique in many respects. In 1996, it was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List under the name of the Lednice-Valtice Cultural Landscape. The area is characterised by a high concentration of natural, cultural, historical and aesthetic values, many of which are of European or global importance. The natural values of the Soutok/ Morava and Dyje/Thaya Rivers Confluence Protected Landscape Area have been largely caused by the interaction of natural processes and human activities. Historical types of forest, pasture and meadow management and Liechtenstein water management and landscaping have created a number of rare habitats there. If they are to be preserved in the future, it will be necessary to strengthen close cooperation between the State Nature Conservancy authorities and the landowners and resource managers and to seek for management measures that are sustainable from an environmental and economic point of view. The protection of the cultural and historical characteristics of the unique area and its cultural and aesthetic values will need to be harmonised with the development of the municipalities there. The protection of the area´s landscape character/scenery has not yet been fully incorporated into the land-use/territorial plans of all municipalities, and is notably absent from some documentation. With regard to the expected changes and development plans of the municipalities (e.g. development of renewable energy sources) it shall be necessary to update the land-use/territorial plans in this respect. In the case of the Lednice-Valtice Landscape Monument Zone, there is a noticeable lack of a conservation plan, which would further specify the protection of the cultural and historical features and values of the area.    ■

Hachmöller A., Sudau M., Lauterbach D. & Ruffer J.: Sustainability and Development of Natural Dry Grasslands in Brandenburg in the Framework of LIFE Projects

The Stiftung NaturSchutzFonds Brandenburg (Brandenburg Fund for Nature Conservation) is implementing two LIFE projects for the management of dry grasslands co-funded by the European Union. Within the LIFE project Sand Grasslands carried out in cooperation with the Brandenburg State Environmental Authority, measures for the conservation, development and restoration of calcareous grasslands on dry sands were implemented on an area of 77 hectares between July 2013 and June 2019. In addition to these measures, other natural habitat types listed in Annex I to the EU Habitats Directive, such as European dry heaths and dry sandy heaths with Calluma and Genistra (inland dunes, old and decalcified), have been stabilised or improved on about 151 hectares. These measures were carried out in 20 project sites in the Dahme-Heideseen Nature Park south of Berlin. The project´s budget was EUR 2.4 million (CZK 60 million). In the other LIFE project, entitled Continental Dry Grasslands, the Brandenburg Fund for Nature Conservation, together with the Botanical Garden of the University of Potsdam and the Naturschutzbund Deutschland (German Association for Nature Conservation and Biodiversity, NABU), is implementing measures to protect and develop dry grasslands between 2019 and 2026. Dry habitats associated with dry grasslands, such as the above European dry heaths, inland dunes with open Carynephorus and Agrostris grasslands and dry sandy heaths with Calluma and Genistra, will also benefit from the project measures. The project also aims to extend the distribution range of the Sand jurinea (Jurinea cyanoides) in Brandenburg to five hectares. In total, it covers 29 sub-areas throughout the province and has a budget of EUR 6.3 million (CZK 157 million). The authors´ experience including methods applied there is described in the article.    ■