Which places have the greatest biodiversity? Are there any where there is no nature? Are cities natural deserts?

Water, in the foreground a grebe with a young one, in the background green aquatic vegetation
Of course, there are habitats that are richer in species, but contrary to popular belief, they are not necessarily forests. In our voivodeship, these are often economic, quite young monocultures and not necessarily only in places where human interference is almost zero. A huge number of plants and insects, as well as rare species of vertebrates, especially birds, occur in meadows and grasslands - preferably used extensively. Their mowing helps to keep the vegetation low, and overgrowing by trees and shrubs causes the disappearance of some organisms. For this reason, active protection measures are carried out if there is no host interested in such use. The Regional Directorate for Environmental Protection in Bydgoszcz mows and removes bushes, among others. the Skarpy Ślesińskie nature reserve and the Natura 2000 area Zbocza Płutowskie to preserve the steppe flora and numerous sites of protected and rare plant species. At the same time, these measures must take into account the presence of organisms associated with other habitats, such as the occurrence of the rare catax butterfly in the Zbocza Płutowskie nature reserve, whose caterpillars feed on various deciduous trees and shrubs.

However, the above-mentioned managed forests are not a desert - it is well known that they are a place of occurrence of many edible mushrooms and are the main nesting place for birds such as the white-tailed eagle, Teng owl or red kite. In addition, it is there that you can expect wolves, badgers, deer, as well as smooth snake (e.g. on clearings, clearings). Particularly noteworthy are old-growth forests, swampy and wetlands, peat bogs, but also dunes. But even the clearing will allow for interesting observations of nightjar or nightjar. Each place has its own specificity.

Certainly, the presence of many plants, animals and fungi is favored by the diversity of habitats, the presence of water and the presence of ecotones - transition zones between different ecosystems. Riparian forests, e.g. on the Vistula River, are very rich in this respect. In the Wielka Kępa nature reserve in the spring, just after dawn, it is really loud when the birds present their repertoire. In the documentation for the protection plan, 72 species of birds, 27 species of mammals and 7 amphibians (e.g. moor frog) and as many as 188 species of plants, including bryophytes, have been found in the nature reserve.

At the same time, however, there are species that cannot withstand competition with more expansive organisms and occur in abundance in places not very friendly to others. They are specialized and resistant to extremes, like sundews, which inhabit highly acidic and nutrient-poor habitats, which they compensate by catching and "digesting" invertebrates. Heather, on the other hand, performs well on training grounds and dunes. Sometimes it dominates in such places on large surfaces. Also in the case of heaths, the cessation of use (e.g. passage of military vehicles) causes their overgrowth, and therefore limited human activity is an asset for the heaths.

Cities cannot be forgotten in this list. It would seem that few animals, plants and fungi can live in them. But even in Bydgoszcz itself, from the birds you can meet grebes, mute swans, mallards, gulls, tufted gulls, uhle, mergansers, gray gulls, white-headed gulls, silver gulls, black-headed gulls, black and small cormorants, sparrows, mazurkas, swifts, jackdaws, magpies, gray crows, ravens, rooks, jays, blue tit, great tit, water warblers, little bitterns, crickets, firecrests and goldcrests, grosbeaks, orioles, starlings, sickle-tails, crested redstarts, black redstarts, kestrels, peregrine falcons and many others. Of course, water plays a significant role here - the Brda River with its meanders and islands, water reservoirs - more or less transformed, parks - especially those "neglected" or difficult to access. In addition, buildings play an important role - full of cracks and nooks and with open roofs, which ensure the proximity of food and a slightly higher temperature in winter than in non-urban areas.

Any place, with a little attention, can allow you to get in touch with nature. It is enough to stop for a moment and look around to see that nature is next to us.