Data Zone
Country/territory: Poland
IBA criteria met: C1, C6 (2010)
For more information about IBA criteria, please click here
Area: 62,500 ha
| IBA conservation status | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year of assessment (most recent) | State (condition) | Pressure (threat) | Response (action) |
| 2016 | favourable | very high | high |
| For more information about IBA monitoring, please click here | |||
Site description (2000 baseline)
The site comprises the Polish part of the Bia³owie¿a forest, one of the largest and best preserved areas of primary lowland temperate forest in Europe, together with small remnants of the Ladzka forest. The forest covers 1,500 km2 of flat plain, of which 620 km2 are in Poland, the rest in Belarus. Moraine hills rise only c.30 m above the landscape. All rivers which run through the forest have water sources there or on its periphery. Most of the forest lies in the Narew and Bug tributaries of the Wis³a (Vistula) catchment. The northern part is drained by tributaries of the Niemen, and the western part is part of the Dniestr catchment. There is an almost total lack of standing water, apart from small bogs. The proportion of forest that can be classed as primeval is not large, but many trees are over 200 years old (old-growth). Most forest is on dry ground, dominated by lime Tilia and hornbeam Carpinus, while the most interesting ornithologically is dominated by oak Quercus. Along valley watercourses there is carr of alder Alnus and ash Fraxinus, with Alnus forest in swampy hollows. There is mixed forest of pine Pinus and Quercus, as well as coniferous forest (mainly on wet soils) dominated by spruce Picea and Pinus. As a result of centuries of man's activities there are clearings, forest settlements, hay-meadows along rivers, road systems and trails, narrow-gauge railways, felling sites, hunting areas and gravel-pits.
Key biodiversity
A total of 250 species have been recorded, including 177-180 breeding. The site is especially rich in breeding raptors (15 species extant, two extinct), owls (eight species extant, one extinct) and woodpeckers (eight species, out of nine in Europe). Breeding species of global conservation concern that do not meet IBA criteria: Gallinago media (rare).
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Bialowieza Forest (Poland). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/bialowieza-forest-iba-poland on 22/11/2024.