Cultural and Natural Landscapes of the Siegerland
Welcome to the homepage of the LIFE project "Siegerländer Kultur- und Naturlandschaften". Within this six-year project, various nature conservation measures are to be implemented in the EU Special Protected Area "Wiesen und Wälder bei Burbach und Neunkirchen" to promote a variety of forest and grassland habitats. This is intended to permanently protect the habitats of rare animal and plant species in the region.
The project has a funding volume of 4,177,980€. Of this, the European Commission is contributing 60%, while co-financing is provided by the Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Traffic of the State of North-Rhine Westphalia, the NRW Foundation and the district of Siegen-Wittgenstein.
Black Woodpecker
The Black Woodpecker is our largest native woodpecker species and can be clearly identified by its black plumage. Males have a red crown that extends from the forehead to the neck.
Middle Spotted Woodpecker
Slightly smaller than the Great-spotted Woodpecker, the Middle-spotted Woodpecker is especially noticeable for its bright red head plate and bright red plumage below the tail. The rest of the plumage is black and white with a dashed pattern on the sides and chest.
Gray-headed Woodpecker
The plumage of the Gray-headed Woodpecker is predominantly green in color, making it look confusingly similar to the slightly larger Green Woodpecker at first glance. The main distinguishing features of the Gray-headed Woodpecker are the eponymous gray head with a narrow black stripe down its cheek. In addition, the males bear a red forehead patch, which is absent in the females.
Red Kite
The plumage of the red kite is predominantly rusty brown in color, with a light gray head. In flight, black and white feathers become visible on the wings. Characteristic for this species is the deeply forked tail, which distinguishes it from other birds of prey in flight.
Whinchat
The male's plumage is blackish brown on top with light brown feather fringes. The chest is brownish-red. The dark brown facial mask with the light over-eye stripe and the light throat are conspicuous. The females are colored in plain brown tones compared to the more colorful males.
Violet Copper
The upper side of the wings is colored orange/brown. Depending on the incidence of light, the males show an intense violet shimmer, which is only slightly pronounced in females. The predominantly brown hind wings are surrounded by an orange band. The lower side of the wings is colored in light orange tones with black dots and crescents.
Marsh Fritillary
The upperparts of the wings are in a variegated checkerboard pattern of orange, yellow, and blackish-brown squares. The hindwings bear an orange-red band with a row of dark spots. The lower side of the wings are less conspicuous in light reddish brown. Again, there is a dark row of dots on the hindwings.
