Materials on the flora of bryophytes and the biota of lichens
of the Kampinos National Park – windthrows of the Rózin range

SUMMARY

Research on bryophyte flora and lichen biota in Kampinos National Park has been conducted for many years. Despite this, the knowledge on the distribution of these groups of organisms in the area is still sufficiently limited and needs to be extended. The aim of this study was to inventory the bryophytes and lichens of a fragment of the Rózin Range where windthrow areas were created in 2017. This resulted in the creation of new epigeic microhabitats and easier access to epiphytic ones, especially in the tree crowns. The research was conducted in 2018-2020. Altogether 108 species were found, including 4 liverworts, 48 mosses, 54 lichens and 2 lichenicolous fungi. One species (Punctelia jeckeri) was strictly protected, 15 were partially protected, and 13 were recorded on national red lists of threatened species. Also, a new stand of invasive moss species, Campylopus introflexus, was found in the study site. The greatest number of lichen species was recorded in epiphytic habitats and windthrow-induced dead wood, while the greatest number of bryophyte species was recorded in epigeic habitats. The presence of fallen trees provided access to habitats generally omitted in studies of bryophyte and lichen biota, such as tree crowns. Many of the species found in the crowns of fallen trees in the studied fragment of the Rózin Range are certainly also present in the crowns of the surrounding living trees.

The problem of developing post-agricultural land –
– the results of the preliminary research
of Aculeata (Chrysididae, Spheciformes, Apiformes) in the “Jelonka” reserve

SUMMARY

The paper presents data on the species richness and abundance of the Aculeata fauna located in “Jelonka” reserve (UTM FD63) in north-eastern Poland. Among the recorded species, 14.7% were rare or threatened. The conservation issues of these species are also discussed.

Herpetofauna of the Chęcińsko-Kielecki Landscape Park

SUMMARY

The observations were carried out in 2019-2021 in the area of the Chęcińsko-Kielecki Landscape Park (Ch-KLP). The Park was established in the central part of the Świętokrzyskie Province to protect the western part of the Świętokrzyska Primeval Forest (Posłowickie Mt., Dymińskie Mt., Zgórskie Mt., Kadzielniańskie Mt., Jaworznicki Mountain Ridge, Bolechowickie Mt., Chęcińskie Mt., Chęcińska Valley, Gałęzicki Mountain Ridge, Zelejowski Mountain Ridge, Zelejowska Valley, Korzeczkowskie Hills, Bolmińskie Hills and Wilkomijskie Hills). It covers the area of 19,781.6 ha and holds 10 nature reserves: “Milechowy” (134 ha), “Karczówka” (26 ha), “Biesak-Białogon” (13 ha), “Góra Zelejowa” (67 ha), “Góra Żakowa” (51 ha), “Góra Miedzianka” (25 ha), “Jaskinia Raj” (8 ha), “Chelosiowa Jama” (26 ha), “Moczydło” (16 ha) and “Góra Rzepka” (9 ha). The Park is distinguished by an exceptional geodiversity. The Ch-KLP encompasses forests that are its prevailing component, a large area of agricultural lands and meadows. Apart from geological values, the Park is characterized by its diversity of flora and fauna.
Amphibians and reptiles were found in different biotopes, including forests, meadows and ponds. The research included an inventory of herpetofauna and the identification of threats, along with determining the necessary protection measures. As a result, 14 species of amphibians and 6 species of reptiles were found in 33 research localities. The following species were found: alpine newt Ichthyosaura alpestris LAUR., smooth newt Lissotriton vulgaris L., great crested newt Triturus cristatus LAUR., European fire-bellied toad Bombina bombina L., common spadefoot toad Pelobates fuscus LAUR., common toad Bufo bufo L., natterjack toad Epidalea calamita LAUR., European green toad Bufotes viridis LAUR., European tree frog Hyla arborea L., edible frog Pelophylax esculentus L., pool frog Pelophylax lessonae CAM., marsh frog Pelophylax ridibundus PALL., moor frog Rana arvalis NILSS., common frog Rana temporaria L., sand lizard Lacerta agilis L., viviparous lizard Zootoca vivipara JACQUIN, slow worm Anguis fragilis L., grass snake Natrix natrix L., Smooth snake Coronella austriaca LAUR., and common European adder Vipera berus L. (Fig. 1 and 2, Tab. 1).
The main threats to amphibians and reptiles in this area are the drying out of water bodies, water pollution, stocking the little ponds, mining of natural rock resources (so called “White Mining Region”) and fire setting. The Park include a number of busy roads (including national road 7, provincial routes 761, 762 and 763), which result in a significant problem of migrating amphibians being killed by cars.

The importance of amphibians in the diet of the Otter Lutra lutra feeding
in the Wigry National Park

SUMMARY

A decrease in the amount of rainfall, and a decrease in the area of wet forests, especially riparian forests and alders, has caused the disappearance of amphibians and increased their decline in Poland. The otter is treated as an obligatory ichthyophage. However, some nutrition studies for this predator indicate that in some areas, amphibians can become an important component of the otter’s diet. The aim of our research was to assess the strength of otter predatory pressure on the populations of amphibians inhabiting the Wigry National Park.
Research on the composition of the otter’s diet was carried out in the period from January to November 2020, at 5 research stations. During the study, 130 otter faeces were collected and analysed. Amphibians were also counted, and their breeding places were inventoried.
11 species of prey have been recorded in the diet of otters. Fish and spiny cheek crayfish were the most common in the diet. Amphibians accounted for only 2.3% of the prey eaten. The obtained results indicate that in the Wigry National Park, amphibians do not constitute an important component of the otter’s diet.

SHORT FLORISTIC, FAUNISTIC AND MICOBIOTIC NOTES

Occurrence of Oellgaard’s clubmoss Diphasiastrum oellgaardii
in the Babia Góra National Park

SUMMARY

Oellgaard’s clubmoss is a hybrid species between the blue clubmoss and the alpine clubmoss. It was first described in 1996 from Central Europe and France. In Poland, it has recently been discovered as a result of a herbarium revision, where it has a dozen or so sites in the mountains. From the Babia Góra massif, the following location is generally given, Babia Góra, Mała Babia. In June 2020, during the field expedition of Babia Góra, an Oellgaard’s clubmoss site was found. This position is located under the Diablak peak, at an altitude of 1680 m a.s.l., near the Perć Akademików hiking trail. This position is so far the only one confirmed in Poland today.

Species structure of fish that died
in Biebrza River because of an oxygen deficit, in July 2021

SUMMARY

In July 2021 an oxygen deficit occurred in the Biebrza River. Dead fish counting was carried out in the middle part of the river. Along a four kilometre long transect 454 fish were found. Perch (56.8%) was the dominating species, with chub (10.6%), roach (7%), bream (6.2%) and burbot (5.3%) being less frequent. Overall, 15 fish species were found. Except catfish, chub, ide and asp, generally small individuals were found. The biggest individual found was a 121 cm long catfish.

CHRONICLE

The first post-war crew of the Białowieża National Park

SUMMARY

About twenty years ago, one of the employees of the Białowieża National Park noticed a written piece of paper lying on a pile of waste paper intended for kindling in the company’s boiler room. It turned out that there was a table on the paper with a list of the first employees of the Białowieża National Park after World War II. This document comes from the spring of 1945 and is an attachment to an unspecified letter from the Białowieża Commune. It is actually a copy of the original, confirmed with an illegible signature. The article presents a list of employees, including their functions. Also, the columns containing the socio-political characteristics of individual employees were analysed. Short biographical notes were prepared for the fourteen people listed in the table. On the reverse of the document there are sketches of beekeeping signs (so-called ciosna), which were used by local beekeepers: Jan, Onufry and Paweł Buszko.

Janusz Domaniewski’s report on the mission
in the Białowieża Forest from 1921

SUMMARY

A report from mission to Białowieża Primeval Forest by Janusz Domaniewski, an outstanding zoologist and nature conservationist was discovered in the archives of the Museum and the Institute of Zoology of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Warsaw. The mission, undertaken in February 1921, was the third scientific expedition to the Forest (after the expeditions of Herman Knothe and Władysław Szafer) organized by the Polish authorities after regaining independence in 1918, and the first after the Polish-Soviet war. Domaniewski went to the Forest as a delegate of the state council for nature conservation to check information about European bison allegedly appearing there. He proved this information false and tracked the source, and also conducted the first estimation of the population of other species of animals. Domaniewski’s report is being published and analysed in our work for the first time.

Post-war Bialoviesiana in Janusz Domaniewski’s (1891-1954) documents in the archive
of the Museum and Institute of Zoology, Polish Academy of Sciences in Warsaw

SUMMARY

The article analyses Janusz Domaniewski’s writings on the post-war history of Białowieża National Park (BNP), stored in the Museum and Institute of Zoology, Polish Academy of Sciences in Warsaw. The analysed letters concern the resumption of the activities of the Society for the Protection of the European Bison, the assessment of the wartime losses in BNP, the disastrous consequences of Lutz Heck’s occupation policy – neglect, theft and bison parasitosis, which was the direct cause of death of bison Purkuł. Problems with establishing the origins of the bison due to the cessation of the “Pedigree Books of the European Bison” are also presented. The stored correspondence also concerns the origin of the European bison named Milis, which was imported and shot during the German occupation of Białowieża Primeval Forest. Archives stored in MIZ PAS are very valuable in documenting the history of the BNP and nature protection in the 1940s and 1950s. They also document the role played by Janusz Domaniewski in nature conservation in the politically difficult post-war period.