Thuringian Forest Biosphere Reserve

UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, inscribed 1979, in Germany. The Thuringian Forest is one of the longest-running biosphere reserves in Germany. When designated in 1979, it was called Vessertal Biosphere Reserve and covered 1,384 ha. It was later expanded to over 225,000 ha. It represents a typical section of the central European Mittelgebirge ridge in the Thuringian Forest, one of the country’s largest contiguous forest areas. Because of its forest wealth and traditional land use, the area is of great importance for the preservation of biological diversity, as demonstrated by the occurrence of 193 species of ferns, flowering plants, fungi and lichens, as well as 245 animal species.