Protection

The protected area

The ‘Heidenreichsteiner Moor’ Nature Park has existed since 1989 and covers the same area as the ‘Gemeindeau’ Nature Reserve, which was designated in 1981. The 29.5-hectare protected area comprises disturbed raised bogs and transitional bogs dating back some 6,000 years, as well as areas of bog woodland.

The nature park is also situated within the Natura 2000 site ‘Waldviertler Teich-, Heide- und Moorlandschaft’ (AT1201A00) and the Ramsar site ‘Teich-, Moor- und Flusslandschaft Waldviertel’. The Natura 2000 bird sanctuary ‘Waldviertel’ (AT1201000) borders the nature reserve to the south, in the area of the Winkelauer Teich, almost touching it. To the north-west, just outside the nature reserve, lies the ‘Hängender Stein’ natural monument.

All commercial activity is prohibited throughout the nature reserve. The nature park’s footpaths and facilities extend across an area of approximately 300 ha of woodland and meadows. This comprises woodland used for forestry and a few small areas of meadow used for agriculture.

Ein malerischer Holzsteg schlängelt sich durch das üppige Grün des Naturparks, umgeben von hohen Bäumen und sanften Lichtspielen. Die frische, klare Luft lädt Wanderer ein, die Ruhe und Schönheit der Natur zu genießen. Hier, im Herzen des Heidenreichsteiner Moors, wird jeder Schritt zu einem unvergesslichen Erlebnis. — ©© Waldviertel Tourismus, weinfranz

The Heidenreichstein Moor

The Heidenreichsteiner Moor, parts of which were cleared for peat in past centuries, is, according to experts, one of the most suitable areas in the northern Waldviertel for restoration.

Yet even here, traces of its former use are still clearly visible today: a paved forest road, flanked on both sides by drainage ditches, cuts through the nature reserve from north to south. In addition, a complex system of former drainage ditches criss-crosses the entire nature reserve, draining it southwards into the Winkelauerteich. Some of the ditches appear very shallow and heavily overgrown with vegetation. However, tests on the water conductivity of the ditches and their surroundings show that even overgrown ditches are hydrologically effective, draining the adjacent areas and channelling the collected water out of the bog via the ditch system.

The (former) high moor is fed by precipitation. It is therefore all the more important to retain the water within the moor by damming or closing off the ditches, and to stabilise the water level at as high a level as possible.
In recent years, as part of several projects involving various partners, a total of over 30 larch timber sheet pile walls have been installed in the ditches.

Water levels that are too low or fluctuate not only lead to the drying out and mineralisation of the peat, but, in combination with nutrient input, also result in the scrub encroachment of bog areas. The dense growth of woody plants, such as birch, alder buckthorn and pine, further depletes the water in these areas and, by shading the ground, prevents the growth of typical bog species such as Sphagnum sp., Eriophorum vaginatum and Vaccinium oxycoccus. The Nature Park Association therefore carries out regular maintenance work to thin out the vegetation. Anyone who would like to get involved in bog conservation can volunteer to support the ‘Team Moor’ during these maintenance operations.

The protection and conservation of moors is not only important for the animal and plant species found there, but also makes a significant contribution to climate protection, as intact moors store large amounts of carbon in their peat layer.

Restoration of the Heidenreichstein Moor

By installing sheet piling in the old drainage ditches, the water level in the moor is raised and stabilised. This helps to ensure that the land does not dry out as far as possible and that the peat layer is preserved.

Eine Gruppe, begleitet von einer Naturvermittlerin steht rund um ein Moorbecken. Zwei Jungen versuchen gemeinsam mit einer Naturvermittlerin die Tiefe des Moors zu messen. — ©© Naturparke Niederösterreich/weinfranz

Nature Conservation in Practice

Would you like to find out more about how bog restoration works in practice? Then join us for a look behind the scenes at nature conservation work.

The nature park area

In the area around the Nature Park Centre, ‘Insektenland’ – a meadow covering approximately 1 hectare – has been created to help conserve and promote a wide variety of insect species. This area is mown only once a year and features a large-scale insect hotel, a wide variety of butterfly, bee and forage plants, and several mounds of wood-decomposing ants. A 2-metre-wide, mown path allows visitors to explore this freely accessible ‘Insect Land’. Numerous dry areas with piles of stones and exposed rocky ground serve as habitats for reptiles.

Furthermore, the grounds of the Naturparkzentrum feature an avenue of fruit trees flanked by a dry stone wall. In total, around 140 different fruit trees grow on the grounds of the Naturparkzentrum.

The forest edge, with a wide variety of native shrubs, provides habitat and food for numerous insects, birds and mammals.