The biosphere reserve Spreewald

Monday, 23 February 2015 - 08:38 am (CET/MEZ) Berlin | Author/Destination:
Category/Kategorie: Environment, UNESCO World Heritage
Reading Time:  3 minutes

Spreewaldgurke - Cucumber of the Spree Forest © spreewald-info.de

Spreewaldgurke – Cucumber of the Spree Forest © spreewald-info.de

The Spreewald (German for “Spree forest”) is situated 100 km south-east of Berlin and designated a biosphere reserve by UNESCO in 1991. It is known for its traditional irrigation system which consists of more than 200 small channels (called “Fließe”; total length : 1,300 km ) within the 484-square-kilometre (187 sq mi) area. The landscape was shaped during the ice-age. Alder forests on wetlands and pine forests on sandy dry areas are characteristic for the region, however, also grasslands and fields can be found.

About 18,000 kinds of animals, flowers and plants are there. In 1991 the Spreewald got the approval of UNESCO as a “Biosphärenreservat” (Man and Biosphere Reserve Programme).

Typical Spree Forest house © Jean-Luc 2005 Spreewald Museum © Olaf Meister Vetschau Castle © Olaf Meister Postal service in Lübbenau-Lehde © Olaf Meister Luebbenau - Tourist boat harbour © Clemensfranz Krausnicker Berge - Wehlaberg Tower © Botaurus Burg - Haus des Gastes - Tourist Information © J-H Janßen A tourist boat on a Spree Forest canal in Lübbenau-Lehde © Reinhard Kraasch Spree Forest lock near Burg © Presse03 Historical and typical Spree Forest house in Lübbenau-Lehde © Uwe Barghaan Spreewaldgurke - Cucumber of the Spree Forest © spreewald-info.de
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A tourist boat on a Spree Forest canal in Lübbenau-Lehde © Reinhard Kraasch
As of 1998 about 50,000 people live in the biosphere reserve. Many of them are descendants of the first settlers in the Spreewald region, the Slavic tribes of the Sorbs/Wends. Until today, they have preserved their traditional language, customs and clothing.

People mostly depend on tourism. Many tourists enjoy the exploration of the Spreewald in punts. However, also agriculture, forestry and fishery are important sources of income. The principal town of the area is Lübbenau.

Read more on spreewald.de, spreewald-info.com, Cucumber of the Spree Forest – Online Shop (German only), Spree Forest Cycle Route and Wikipedia Spree Forest. Learn more about the use of photos. To inform you about latest news most of the city, town or tourism websites offer a newsletter service and/or operate Facebook pages/Twitter accounts. In addition more and more destinations, tourist organisations and cultural institutions offer Apps for your Smart Phone or Tablet, to provide you with a mobile tourist guide (Smart Traveler App by U.S. Department of State - Weather report by weather.com - Johns Hopkins University & Medicine - Coronavirus Resource Center - Global Passport Power Rank - Democracy Index - GDP according to IMF, UN, and World Bank - Global Competitiveness Report - Corruption Perceptions Index - Press Freedom Index - World Justice Project - Rule of Law Index - UN Human Development Index - Global Peace Index - Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index). If you have a suggestion, critique, review or comment to this blog entry, we are looking forward to receive your e-mail at comment@wingsch.net. Please name the headline of the blog post to which your e-mail refers to in the subject line.




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