Laidevahe Nature Reserve | |
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Location | Estonia |
Nearest city | Kuressaare |
Coordinates | 58°20′09″N22°48′02″E / 58.33583°N 22.80056°E Coordinates: 58°20′09″N22°48′02″E / 58.33583°N 22.80056°E |
Area | 2,442 ha (6,030 acres) |
Established | 2002 [1] |
Designated | 31 March 2003 |
Reference no. | 1271 [2] |
Laidevahe Nature Reserve (Estonian : Laidevahe looduskaitseala) is a nature reserve situated on Saaremaa in western Estonia, in Saare County.
Laidevahe nature reserve protects an area of coastal wetlands, comprising salt marshes, islets, small lagoons, coastal meadows and so on, but also areas of old-growth forest and alvars. The area is internationally recognized as an important habitat for several species of birds, including the white-tailed eagle which has bred in the area since at least 1995. Other notable bird species found in Laidevahe are dunlin (Calidris alpina), barnacle goose (Branta leucopsis) and little crake (Porzana parva). [3] The coastal nature reserve is also rich in fish, and in addition is a habitat for both otter and grey seal. As for the flora, several species of orchid grow in the nature reserve - for example, early purple orchid, greater butterfly orchid and lady slipper orchids. [4] [5] [6]
The Laidevahe Nature Reserve comprises a myriad of wetland areas. It has lagoons, coastal lakes and saltmarshes, consists of over 40 islets and has large swathes of reedbeds. This diverse vegetation type forms the core of the West Estonian Archipelago Biosphere Reserve (1990). The wetlands are also endowed with small areas of boreo-nemoral broadleaved forests, alvars and dry meadows. [6]
In the vicinity of the Laidevahe Nature Reserve are the Püha and Valjala medieval churches. [6]
An alvar is a biological environment based on a limestone plain with thin or no soil and, as a result, sparse grassland vegetation. Often flooded in the spring, and affected by drought in midsummer, alvar support a distinctive group of prairie-like plants. Most alvars occur either in northern Europe or around the Great Lakes in North America. This stressed habitat supports a community of rare plants and animals, including species more commonly found on prairie grasslands. Lichen and mosses are common species. Trees and bushes are absent or severely stunted.
The Towra Point Nature Reserve is a protected nature reserve that is located in Sutherland Shire, southern Sydney, New South Wales, in eastern Australia. The 603-hectare (1,490-acre) reserve is situated on the southern shores of Botany Bay at Kurnell, within the Sutherland Shire. The reserve is protected under the Ramsar Convention as a wetland of international importance as an important breeding ground for many vulnerable, protected, or endangered species. The Towra Point Aquatic Nature Reserve is located in the surrounding waterways.
Nigula Nature Reserve is a nature reserve situated in South-West of Estonia, in Häädemeeste and Saarde parishes of Pärnu County. It has an area of 63.98 km². Nigula nature reserve is one of the oldest bog reserves in Estonia. It is established to protect the Nigula Bog and its surrounding forests in their natural state.
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Matsalu National Park is a nature reserve and national park situated in Lääne and Pärnu Counties, Estonia. Matsalu National Park spans an area of 486.1 km2 (187.7 sq mi), comprising Matsalu Bay, the Kasari River delta, the village of Matsalu and surrounding areas.
Alam-Pedja Nature Reserve is the largest nature reserve in Estonia. It is a vast wilderness area which covers 342 km2 and consists of a complex of 5 large bogs separated by unregulated rivers, their floodplains, and extensive forests. The nature reserve aims to protect diverse ecosystems and rare species, mainly through preserving the natural development of forests and bogs and securing the continuing management of semi-natural floodplain grasslands.
Akyatan Lagoon is a 14700-hectare wetland ecosystem that is designated as Wetland of International Importance by Ramsar Convention. A major stop over for migrating birds, Akyatan is recognized as an Important Bird Area by BirdLife International. It is the single largest green turtle rookery at the Mediterranean, holding 43% of the Mediterranean nesting population.
The Port Phillip Bay and Bellarine Peninsula Ramsar Site is one of the Australian sites listed under the Ramsar Convention as a wetland of international importance. It was designated on 15 December 1982, and is listed as Ramsar Site No.266. Much of the site is also part of either the Swan Bay and Port Phillip Bay Islands Important Bird Area or the Werribee and Avalon Important Bird Area, identified as such by BirdLife International because of their importance for wetland and waterbirds as well as for orange-bellied parrots. It comprises some six disjunct, largely coastal, areas of land, totalling 229 km2, along the western shore of Port Phillip and on the Bellarine Peninsula, in the state of Victoria. Wetland types protected include shallow marine waters, estuaries, freshwater lakes, seasonal swamps, intertidal mudflats and seagrass beds.
The Coral Sea Reserves Ramsar Site comprises the 17,292 km2 of oceanic island and reef habitats within the former Coringa-Herald National Nature Reserve and the former Lihou Reef National Nature Reserve in the Australian Coral Sea Islands Territory.
Endla Nature Reserve is a nature reserve situated in central Estonia.
Agusalu Nature Reserve is a nature reserve situated in eastern Estonia, in Ida-Viru County.
Sookuninga Nature Reserve is a nature reserve situated in south-western Estonia, in Pärnu County.
Rubina Nature Reserve is a nature reserve in Viljandi County in southern Estonia.
Silma Nature Reserve is a nature reserve situated in south-western Estonia, in Lääne County.
Puhtu-Laelatu Nature Reserve is a nature reserve situated in western Estonia, in Lääne County. It is located in the territory of Pivarootsi, Rame and Hanila villages and in Virtsu small borough.
The Las Piñas–Parañaque Critical Habitat and Ecotourism Area (LPPCHEA), also known as the Las Piñas–Parañaque Wetland Park, is a protected area at the coasts of the cities of Las Piñas and Parañaque in Metro Manila, Philippines. The entire wetland is a declared Ramsar site under the Ramsar Convention of UNESCO.
Rahuste Nature Reserve is a nature reserve situated on Saaremaa island in western Estonia, in Saare County.
The West Estonian Archipelago Biosphere Reserve is a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in Estonia, located in the West Estonian archipelago in the eastern Baltic Sea. The 15,600 square kilometres (6,000 sq mi) reserve comprises the islands of Saaremaa, Hiiumaa, Vormsi and Muhu, as well as numerous islets and marine parts. The islands are in the transition zone between temperate needle-leaf and broadleaf forest.
The Divjakë-Karavasta National Park is a national park in western Albania, sprawling across the Myzeqe Plain in the direct proximity to the Adriatic Sea. The park spans a territory of 222.3 square kilometres (22,230 ha) containing remarkable features such as wetlands, salt marshes, coastal meadows, floodplains, woodlands, reed beds, forests and estuaries. Because of the park's important and great availability of bird and plant species, it has been identified as an important Bird and Plant Area of international importance.