Grazing for biotope protection
In order to counteract long-term loss through succession, the Wachtelberg-Mühlbachtal nature reserve requires ecologically adapted, continuous maintenance. This is provided by regular grazing of the areas with sheep, which is carried out on behalf of the lower nature conservation authority of the district of Leipzig.
In the maintenance and development plan for the Wachtelberg-Mühlbachtal nature reserve, grazing is recommended as a method of promoting species that are weak in competition and are suppressed or completely eliminated by the development of a dense sward as a result of regular and exclusive mowing.
Through adapted grazing management
- the valuable warm open land biotopes are restored and preserved,
- ideal habitat conditions are restored for the pasque flower (Red List 1 Saxony),
- diverse structures and habitats are created and
- small-scale changing habitats are networked with each other.
In 2003, LANU acquired part of the Wachtelberg-Mühlbachtal nature reserve in order to permanently secure and preserve this unique biotope and the species found there. In co-operation with the environmental office of the district of Leipzig and the Walter Meusel Foundation in Chemnitz, x% of the protected area is grazed under professional control and species conservation is ensured by breeding.
The grazing of the sensitive biotope types is controlled each year in consultation between the nature conservation authority and the shepherd, taking into account species-specific requirements and the respective course of the vegetation growth in the climatically very variable summers.