Large and complex area with a good variety of habitats, from sandy beaches, forested dune systems (a mosaic of Pinus sylvestris woodland and interspersed by fens) and a raised bog Bazu purvs, to vast stands of mixed and broadleaved forest. The forest is the dominant habitat type, at some 70% of the area. A large part of the site was included in the first European IBA inventory [6] and listed in all subsequent international and national site lists [7, 8, 1]. Almost fully protected: there is a 99.3% overlap with Slitere national park and Dizkalni and Kalkupes ieleja restricted nature reserve, both candidate SPAs.
