Maglehem

Maglehem Nature Reserve

We are greeted by open areas and grazing animals in Maglehem Nature Reserve. Large parts of the site are being restored from pine plantations into pastures. In the wake of the machines, cows and horses finish the work. Old tracks and paths make for easy walking.

The open areas

Ever since the Bronze Age, people have utilized the land in Maglehem Nature Reserve. In the 1700s the landscape was completely open, with grazing animals and temporary fields. At the beginning of the 1900s large areas were planted with pine. The pine has now been felled and sandy pastures with flowering bushes of hawthorn and rose, scattered trees and small patches of broadleaved woodland will develop. On the patches of bare sand, dung beetles, bees and wasps make their nests and weakly competitive plants have the chance to establish. Typical species from sandy areas can disperse naturally from the adjacent Reserves. Butterflies and bees will be amongst the first to arrive.

David’s Fen

David’s Fen can be found in the north-western corner of the site, south of the road; an extremely rich fen which contains a large number of rare animals and plants. The carnivorous plant common butterwort and the unusual flea sedge grow here. Rare snails, such as geyer’s whorl snail, find chalk for their shells in the fen. A system of irrigation channels running parallel to the Stockabäcken stream are remains from a time when the fen was important for hay cutting.

Stockabäcken Stream

The clear, running water of the stream contributes to the rich variation in the Reserve. The cool water and the gravelly bed are perfect breeding grounds for brown trout. Grey wagtails and kingfishers search for food and yellow flag iris flowers in the shade of the wet woodland.

Regulations for Maglehem visitors

Within Maglehem Nature Reserve it is forbidden to:

• remove, dig, bore, paint or in any other way damage the ground, stones or natural objects,
• camp or park caravans, campers or similar overnight
• light fires,
• during the period 1 April to 30 November ride or lead horses
• cycle other than on roads
• deliberately disturb grazing animals
• bring dogs or other pets unless on a physical leash
• pick, dig up or in any other way damage plants, mosses, lichens and wood-living fungi
• park outside designated parking areas
• introduce or release species alien to the reserve

Furthermore, without written permission from the County Administrative Board, it is forbidden to:

• hold or organise competitions or similar events,
• catch insects, spiders, gastropods or other invertebrate animals other than by netting, hand picking or other selective method which does not destroy their habitat, with subsequent reintroduction within the nature reserve. The requirement for reintroduction does not apply to individual voucher specimens of species which are difficult to identify, on condition that the record is logged in the reporting system Artportalen, or an equivalent national database for threatened species, and that the collection is not contrary to the species protection regulations,