Last weekend we were in the beautiful Krakovo forest (Krakovski gozd) after several years from our
last visit. For us this is a magical place
as it represents the only semi-natural lowland riparian forest left in Slovenia; therefore we like to call it "Little
Białowieża". We usually visit it once every couple of years and the area never disappoints us; this time was no exception! Apart from discovering what looks like the
first leucistic Ural Owl for science, we also enjoyed in the other typical wildlife of the forest, especially plants. Krakovski gozd is the last largest remnant of lowland alluvial forest in Slovenia and is thus extremely important for the conservation of some nationally rare plant and animal species. Speaking about birds there are two species that in Krakovski gozd reach very high population densities: Middle Spotted Woodpecker
Dendrocopos medius and Collared Flycatcher
Ficedula albicollis. Among others there are also breeding White-tailed Eagle
Haliaeetus albicilla, Black Stork
Ciconia nigra and Ural Owl
Strix uralensis. Due to vast flooded forest areas this is also a paradise for amphibians, including large populations of the endangered Moor Frog
Rana arvalis. The predominant forest types include two lowland oak-hornbeam associations (
Pseudostellario-Quercetum and
Pseudostellario-Carpinetum) and alder riparian forest (
Carici brisoides-Alnetum glutinosae). The most interesting part of Krakovski gozd is the primeval forest reserve - a small (40,5 ha) area of almost-natural forest, excluded from forestry activities in 1952 and left to its natural development. Due to the large amounts of dead timber this is a paradise for woodpeckers and secondary cavity-nesters.
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| Primeval oak-hornbeam forest at Krakovski gozd |
Despite the fact that some of the summer migrants (like Collared Flycatcher) haven't returned yet to Krakovski gozd, the place is still worth a visit at this time of year. The vernal flora of the woodland floor is amazing and among the many common species there are several botanical delights to enjoy. The absolute highlight among plants is certainly the rare Snake's-head Fritillary Fritillaria meleagris, an endangered species of wet meadows and flooded forests. Krakovski gozd represents one of the few sites where this plant can still be found in Slovenia. However there are other botanical rarities of lowland forest and wet meadows such as Bog Violet Viola uliginosa, Dacian Lungwort Pulmonaria dacica and Belgian Gagea Gagea spathacea to name just a few we saw.
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| Snake's-head Fritillary Fritillaria meleagris |
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| Flooded oak-hornbeam forest. |
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| Bog Violet Viola uliginosa |
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| Belgian Gagea Gagea spathacea |
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| Dacian Lungwort Pulmonaria dacica |
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| Goldilocks Buttercup Ranunculus auricomus |
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| European False Stitchwort Pseudostellaria europaea |
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| Marsh Marigold Caltha palustris |
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| Alternate-leaved Golden Saxifrage Chrysosplenium alternifolium |
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| Wood Sorrel Oxalis acetosella |
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| Lesser Celandine Ficaria verna (ex Ranunculus ficaria) |
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| Wood Anemone Anemone nemorosa |
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| Early Dog Violet Viola reichenbachiana |
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| Hornbeam Carpinus betulus |
Early spring is also ideal for woodpeckers as most species are highly territorial when the trees are still leaf-less. During our visit we counted no less than 15 different Middle Spotted Woodpeckers Dendrocopos medius, especially at the edges of the primeval forest, where the oaks are very old and really huge. It was nice to hear their distinctive song - a "mewing" they produce only in spring and one they use instead of drumming (which is almost unknown in this species). Among other birds we also had Black Dryocopus martius, Grey-headed Picus canus & Lesser Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos minor, Goshawk Accipiter gentilis, Tawny Owl Strix aluco, Short-toed Certhia brachydactyla & Treecreeper Certhia familiaris and other commoner species. There were also several butterflies around, among which the commonest in the forest were Orange-tips Anthocharis chardamines frequently seen feeding on their larval food plants (Cuckooflower Cardamine pratensis and Trifoliate Bittercress Cardamine trifolia).
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| Middle Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos medius |
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| Feeding signs of Black Woodpecker Dryocopus martius |
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| Orange-tip Anthocharis cardamines on Trifoliate Bittercress Cardamine trifolia |
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| Comma Polygonia c-album |
More about lowland riparian forests in Slovenia
here.
