Mokradła koło Leśniczówki Łowiska Nature Reserve

The Mokradła koło Leśniczówki Łowiska Nature Reserve is a peat bog reserve in Wałcz municipality, in Wałcz County, in the Drawsko Forest. It covers three small lakes and the pine forest around them. The Łowiska forester's lodge, from which the name comes, lies about 100 m south of Lake Jeleń.

The reserve

The protected area was established in November 2011. It covers 101.75 ha, of which 8 to 10 ha is taken up by Lake Jeleń, and the whole area is under active protection. It lies on land of the Tuczno forest district, within the boundaries of the Puszcza nad Drawą Protected Landscape Area and two Natura 2000 sites.

Nature

The aim of protection is to preserve a complex of transitional bogs and lakes with the forest in their catchment, and the sites of rare aquatic and bog plants. In Lake Jeleń water plantain grows abundantly. In all the small lakes there is a hybrid of white and least water lily. Among the bog plants growing here are, for example, round-leaved sundew and Scheuchzeria, and the birds nesting include goldeneye, common sandpiper, mute swan and crane.

Practical information

• Location: about 3 km west of Smoląg and 4 km east of Mielęcin, in the forest.
• No trail or observation point is described here, so before a visit it is necessary to ask about access at the Tuczno Forest District or the regional directorate for environmental protection.