Pieniny mountains with us and us with the Pieniny mountains!

On 30^th July 2015 members of the LIFE+ Jura Project staff went to Pieniny National Park in order to establish official cooperation with Project LIFE12 NAT/PL/000034 "Nature mosaics – protection of species and habitats in Natura 2000 site Pieniny".

On the first day, during the indoors session the participants discussed briefly the main actions and objectives of both Projects. The objectives of the Projects are similar and certain actions are analogous, i.e. land purchase and the removal of alien species. The exchange of the experiences allowed us to broaden our views on the problems connected with land purchase and on the means employed to combat the Sakhalin knotweed in various areas. The members of the LIFE+ Jura team were shown around the Nature Exhibition located on the first floor of the Headquarters of the Pieniny National Park. The indoors part of the meeting ended with signing the declaration of cooperation between the Projects.

In the morning of the following day, we went out in the field to see the results of the actions carried out as a part of the Project with the coordinator of LIFE+ Pieniny Project, Mr. Andrzej Kowalski. The first place we visited was the Czorsztyn Castle. We could observe the results of actions aimed at protecting the endemic species: Treacle-mustard (Erysimum pieninicum). The actions involved renovation of external walls of the castle and shrub removal.

Next place we visited was the Majerz glade in Hałuszowa, where a pond for the amphibians and drinking bowls for sheep will be constructed within the framework of the Project. Other action planned in the area involves securing the outflow of water in order to protect the breeding sites for amphibians.

Finally, we visited the Dunajec River Gorge between Krościenko nad Dunajcem and Szczawnica where we saw the results of the removal of the Sakhalin knotweed from the backwater areas and the results of the actions of active protection in the areas purchased in the framework of the Project in order to preserve the mosaic landscapes and biodiversity of this territory.

You may find more about the Project realized by Pieniny National Park at: http://www.pieninypn.pl/

Indoors session

Nature Exhibition in the Headquarters of the Pieniny National Park

Czorsztyn Castle with Treacle-mustard habitats by the walls

A view of the Czorsztyn Lake and the Niedzica Castle

A fragment of the renovated external castle wall (Czorsztyn)

Walking through the Majerz glade...

... we reached the secured water outflow sites and drinking bowls for the farm animals

A panorama of the not-so-far-away Tatra mountains seen from the Majerz glade