EXECUTIVE SUMMARY - UNESCO World Heritage

1. One single tree species (Fagus sylvatica)
has come, over the course of postglacial
expansion, to absolute domination over the
natural vegetation of a major part of an
entire continent and, based on intraspecifi c
genetic diff erentiation, has adapted to
the highly varying local conditions with the
overall territory, which boundaries being
primarily defi ned by climate;
2. Th e complete replacement of an climax
ecosystem by a new one as a consequence of
postglacial global climate change – the
replacement of the oak-linden forests by
beech forests since the subatlanticum, as well
as the biogeographic and ecological diversifying
over the course of the late postglacial
evolution;
3. Th e regeneration power and for the survival
to the present day of a climax ecosystem
with long-standing habitat tradition
as well as of structures and processes typical
for original wilderness despite fragmentation
partly ending in isolation within
extensive landscapes with a long history of
settlement;
4. Ongoing carbon fi xation in growing biomass
and of ongoing and permanent carbon
storage in the humus of soil, as well as of
the ability of nemoral deciduous forest ecosys
tems to regenerate degraded soils with
revitalisation of their ecosystem functions
in a unique manner.
Th e additional value of the German component
parts consists in:
• the completion of the history of postglacial
areal expansion
• the completion of the altitudinal gradient
from the seashore to the submontane belt
• the addition of the best remaining
examples in the geographical heartland
of beech distribution
• the enlargement of the ecological spectrum
with regional, bio-geographical
and ecological diff erent beech forest types
and their specifi c plant and animal life,
cover ing the main part of the autochthon
Central European biological diversity
• the involvement of specifi c compartments
of typical landscape-ecological complexes,
e. g. sea shore cliff s, mires, lakes, streams,
rocks, boulder fi elds as last remnants
of Central European ancient deciduous
forest landscape.
Primeval forest relic in
Kellerwald
Nationale
Naturlandschaften
SUMMARY
13