Karaś Lake Nature Reserve

Karaś Lake

Karaś Lake Nature Reserve

  • Country: 
    Poland
  • Site number: 
    284
  • Area: 
    815 ha
  • Designation date: 
    03-01-1984
  • Coordinates: 
    53°33'N 19°28'E
Materials presented on this website, particularly maps and territorial information, are as-is and as-available based on available data and do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Secretariat of the Ramsar Convention concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.

Overview

This Nature Reserve in northern Poland is composed of a lake, Jezioro Karaś, which is surrounded by mires and swamps. The Reserve has a relatively small extension of 815 hectares, but includes a variety of wetland habitats, from the lake’s open water to swampy forests. It is surrounded by farmland, and its boundaries can be clearly distinguished due to its different land uses. Human activities at and around the Site also include commercial fishing and forestry. The lake is divided into two different basins surrounded by a ring of reedbeds, after which successive habitats support important populations of waterfowl species such as spotted crake (Porzana porzana) and little crake (Porzana parva), which regularly breed there. More than 175 species are found within the Reserve, most of them protected under Polish legislation. Changes in plant communities have been noted, which may lead to changes to the Site’s ecological character. The Reserve is currently managed by the Forest District of Iława and the Regional Water Management Authority of Warsaw. The management plan in force grants strict protection, maintaining existing habitats and their hydrology.

Administrative region: 
Warmińsko-Mazurskie

  • National legal designation: 
    • Nature Reserve - Karaś Lake
  • Regional (international) legal designations: 
    • EU Natura 2000
  • Last publication date: 
    11-02-2020

Downloads

Ramsar Information Sheet (RIS)

Additional reports and documents