At the end of December, the General Assembly of the Capital City protected nature conservation in the 2nd district Jegenye Valley and the floodplain gallery forest of Óbuda Island - fokert.hu reports.

The hornbeam-oak forest was once one of the greatest natural values of Budapest, but today it has almost completely disappeared. That is why it is a very important step that The Jegenye Valley, known for its hornbeam-oak forests on the border of Solymár, closed by the administrative border of Hidegkúti street, Kecskerágó street and Szívvirág street, received natural protection in the northernmost part of the district. 

The Jegenye Valley (Photo: fokert.hu)

From the large population of salamanders living here, there is a stream on the northern edge of the area, also called the Salamander Valleys, which provides a clean, constant water flow, which runs in one of the most prestigious gorge valleys in Budapest. Although the area is almost completely isolated from the large natural and near-natural habitats of the Buda Hills, its wildlife is clearly defined by the nearby undeveloped forests, which already belong to the Buda Landscape Protection Area.  

The Fir or Salamander Valley (Photo: fokert.hu)

There are forest finches, terns, sagebrushes, bullfinches, as well as tentacles and mountain fuzz among the branches of the trees. We can also find the largest species of woodpecker in Europe.

Of great value is the almost untouched karst bush patch in the upper part of the valley. There is also a protected herbaceous herbaceous herb, as well as a yellow crown herd, with a population estimated at 300, one of the largest in the capital. The presence of a very rare protected belfry in Budapest also became known on the site a few years ago, as did the turban lily. The valley is also characterized by water and clean forest watercourses, which are now rare in the capital.

Protected turban lily in the Jegenye Valley (Photo: fokert.hu)

 The gallery forest surrounding the island of Óbuda has also become protected under the decision. The gallery forest, which is about 2.5 km long and runs along the east and west sides of the island, surrounds the coastline as a kind of wreath. Here we can find the black poplar matuzems and aged willows, which are among the largest in the capital - it turns out from the information of fokert.hu. The fauna associated with the forest is extremely diverse.

The gallery forest surrounds the island as a strip (Photo: fokert.hu)

In the forest patch of more than 30 hectares in its natural state, there are many species of wild plants and animals that are rare and protected in Budapest and in Hungary, among them the star flower of the Danube Valley with hundreds of stems. Among the representatives of the fauna, one of the largest populations of small theatrical butterflies and birds in Budapest is of increased value.

One of the biggest values of the island is the population of birds migrating and wintering here. Summer geese appear in small numbers every year (Photo: fokert.hu)

Over the last 3 decades, experts have observed more than 150 species of birds on the island and the surrounding stretch of river, including the colorful yellow-throated dipper, earwig, green sparrow or bald eagle.

One of the most valuable plants of the place is the star flower of the Danube Valley (Photo: fokert.hu)

The Danube and the floodplain gallery forest directly connected to it form one of the most valuable habitat complexes in Budapest, and its special feature is further enhanced by its natural shoreline, which is now a rarity in the Danube section of the capital.

Source: fokert.hu

Cover photo: The gallery forest surrounding the Jegenye Valley and Óbuda Island is now a nature conservation area (Photo: fokert.hu)