Müritz National Park

Schlossplatz 3 D- 17237 Hohenzieritz

Founded in 1990 in the Müritz National Park is located in the south of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and is the largest terrestrial national park in the Federal Republic. The park extends over the two spatially separated areas of the lake district and part of the Feldberg Lakes. The western part is the greater part of Müritz area, the smaller eastern part is called part Serrahn. Between the sub-regions is essentially the urban area of ​​Neustrelitz.

Characteristics

The total of 322 km ² National Park is covered by forests and 72 percent to 13 percent of lakes; eight percent of the area are swamps and meadows five percent and two percent of farmland.

Landscape formative the Weichsel ice age was about 15,000 years ago. The glaciers of the Pomeranian Hauptendmoräne left behind boulders, tongue basins, channels and countless dead ice holes. The latter are present ( for example, the Vienna Pietsch lakes) and kettle holes scattered everywhere as lakes in the countryside.

In total there are 100 lakes in the National Park and countless smaller pond. The Müritz, with an area of 117 square kilometers, the largest body of water that lies entirely within Germany.

Subspecialty Müritz

The sub-region Müritz mainly comprises the eastern hinterland of Lake Müritz. Besides the Müritz, which is only in small part in the National Park, are large waters in the western part of the Feisnecksee, Rederangsee, Specker lake and Woterfitzsee. Some lakes on the eastern shore of Lake Müritz were due to water level fluctuations due to mill statue and regulation of Elde temporarily part of the Müritz.

The highest elevation in the generally flatter Müritzer part is the Käflingsberg with 100.3 m above sea level. NHN. Here is the Käflingsbergturm a combined lookout, fire watch and mobile phone base tower.

Part Serrahn

The part Serrahn comprises the eastern part of the National Park and is located in the transition between the Mecklenburg Lake District to Feldberg Lakes. In the wooded hills of the national park there with the Great Fürstenseer lake, the Schweingartensee and the Zwirnsee larger lakes. However, these are not that shape the landscape like in the western part. Large areas of this area belong to the Natural Park Feldberg Lakes.

In part Serrahn are with the Hirschberg ( 143.7 m above sea level. NHN ) and the Warsberg ( 143.2 m above sea level. NHN ) the highest elevations in the park. Other important heights are the Serrahner mountains with 124.2 m above sea level. NHN. On 25 June 2011, this part of the conservation area was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Climate

The Müritz National Park is located in a zone of transition from the sub-Atlantic sub-continental climate. That is, the oceanic influence is only weak, and the continental weather has only minor importance.

The microclimate in the Müritz is significantly influenced by the lake. The annual variation of the temperature is mitigated by the large body of water in both the warming in the spring as well as during cooling in the fall.

Waren (Müritz) has the long-term average of -4 ° C, the lowest temperature in February in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. The fact that rainfall often rain down on the Müritz Mecklenburg and the other major lakes, there is relative low precipitation in the western part of the park. In the eastern part of the precipitation to take, especially in summer. The cause could be the intense summer heating of the outwash plains and the increased thunderstorm activity associated with it, as well as from raining at about 140 m above sea level. NHN high hills of Strelitzer lobe, the Pomeranian terminal moraine, are accepted.

In the eastern part pass through large closed beech forests with embedded lowering local climatic influences. So it is in the sink very often triggers the formation of so-called cold air lakes. Another type of microclimate occurs in the open countryside of the former military training area in bacon. There by the lack of vegetation cover very large temperature differences between day and night.

Fauna and Flora

In the field, among others, many sea eagles and ospreys have their cost area. In particular, the osprey can be seen from viewing platforms out in their breeding and while hunting.

Krick and teals nest in the dense riparian vegetation of Lake Müritz, reed warbler and the rare bittern are in the wetlands at home. During the migration period, waders keep as dwarf beach runners, Redshank and Greenshank on in the area. Black storks and cranes are breeding birds in the Müritz National Park.

Botanically notable are Riede rare sour grass species such as the cutting Ried ( Cladium mariscus ) and large, landscape-shaping, on the eastern shore of Lake Müritz area also occurring juniper stands that were formerly used extensively for grazing animals.

The occurrence of many different habitat types also ensures a high level of biodiversity of animal and plant species in the National Park. It so far 54 species of mammals, 214 species of birds, 859 species of beetles, 673 species of butterflies large, 61 spider species, 16 reptile and amphibian species and 26 fish species were observed in the National Park. The flora consists, inter alia, to composed of 910 species of vascular plants, 133 species of mosses and 17 Chara spp. In addition, 593 fungal species and 152 lichen species were counted.

In January 2011, probably tore a wolf three in a park next to the National Park held reindeer. As National Park spokesman Hendrik Fulda said, has already long been expected in the Müritz National Park with the appearance of a wolf.

History

One of the last official acts of the Government of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) succeeded the then Deputy Environment Minister Michael Succow together with other dedicated conservationists under the National Park program to expel several large protected areas (national parks, biosphere reserves ), including 320 km ² in the Mecklenburg Lake District.

During the time of the GDR in this region was a so-called " production- integrating nature conservation" has been propagated. The extremely sparsely populated land was used for military exercises, carp breeds and State hunts as well as intensive forestry and agriculture. The population was forbidden to enter the land under state hunting area forests. However, twelve kilometers of the shoreline of Lake Müritz were already in GDR times under stricter conservation.

The intensive forest management has ensured that monotonous pine forests of the National Park nor characterize today. A trend towards natural area typical deciduous forest is initiated by the National Park Authority, this process will take several decades. In a separate area in the east of the national park, on the hills of Serrahn, but can be already visited, what face will carry the field when undisturbed forest communities can develop according to natural conditions again. Here you will find a larger, primeval stock of old beech trees.

Continued by the GDR administration drainage of the area by channels lowered the water table continuously. Extensive birch forests emerged over the years. The current National Park Authority blocks channels and thus raises the ground water to the original level. The birches are dying, the actual flora is slowly taking shape again. As the process proceeds without further human intervention, large areas with birch stumps are currently on view.

Tourist national park with hiking and biking trails, picnic areas, observation towers and observation posts is well developed. Buses ( with bike transport trailers) operate with multiple stops in the blocked for car parking area. In department has existed since 2007 with the Müritzeum an information and nature center for the National Park region.