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Description
The small river Selz has been renaturalised at this reserve and European Beavers have recolonised as well. Along with an area of flooded marshes, reedbeds, ponds, grassland and scattered riverine woodland, some regionally scarce breeders are present and over the years a wide variety of passage and winter birds have been recorded. Over 200 species are now on the reserve list. A concerted effort in Spring on a good day can produce 70 species at the reserve and along the river.
The main attraction for most will be spring and summer reedbed visitors, such as Синьошийка, Кобилочка солов’їна and Лунь очеретяний. Очеретянка велика has become more regular. Сутора вусата, або синиця вусата appears on passage and in some years has stayed to breed. Ремез звичайний has bred but nowadays is generally a scarce migrant. There is a Чапля сіра colony and scarcer relatives such as Квак звичайний, Мала біла чапля, Бугайчик, Чапля руда and Бугай водяний have all been recorded in recent years, some regularly.
Passage waders can be found on the pools or flooded grasslands, but this is heavily dependent on weather and water level conditions. More regular are Коловодник лісовий, Коловодник болотяний, Набережник палеарктичний and Коловодник великий. Коловодник звичайний, Побережник чорногрудий, Пісочник малий, Пісочник великий, Брижач and Коловодник чорний are no longer regular but also possible. Local scarcities such as Грицик великий, Чоботар синьоногий, Кульон середній, Побережник червоногрудий, Побережник білохвостий and even Плавунець плоскодзьобий have all been recorded here and along the river. Сивка звичайна and Хрустан євразійський have been recorded migrating overhead on occasion.
Журавель сірий, Лелека чорний and Лелека білий are regular visitors, and the latter has started to breed. The woodlands hold good numbers of Соловейко західний and Вивільга звичайна. Дятел середній has recently colonised the area. In adjacent meadows and scrub Сорокопуд терновий, Трав'янка чорноголова, Жовта плиска and Просянка can be found on passage and breeding. Сич хатній and Сова вухата breed, as does Підсоколик великий, Шуліка рудий and Шуліка чорний.
Wildfowl numbers, mostly dabbing ducks, build up modestly in Spring and Autumn with Чирянка мала, Крижень, and Нерозень being the most easily encountered. Visibility can be a challenge with reeds obscuring the pools, so try using a scope from higher ground. In most winters, singles or low numbers of wild geese are recorded among the resident groups of Гуска сіра, the most regular being Гуска білолоба, followed by Tundra Bean Goose. A Лебідь-кликун was a recent and unusual overwinterer. Щеврик гірський is regular on passage and sometimes winter.
Details
Access
Limited free parking is available at a couple of small paved areas next to the L432 between Hahnheim and Sörgenloch. This road is also on a bus-route (652) with the nearest bus-stop at Wahlheimer Hof to the east of the reserve, or alternatively at Sörgenloch to the west. A path, paved only on most of the southern side, circumvents the pools, grassland, and reedbeds. Cycling this part of the southern edge is possible, but other stretches are often high grass (beware of ticks) and can be muddy depending on conditions. An official paved cycling route veers west of the reserve when at the south-western corner but returns to the Selz shortly afterwards. Beaver activity and excessive rain sometimes causes extensive localised flooding.