At the beginning of June, the project team visited several LIFE projects in Slovenia to learn about the protection of the species, as well as to share the experience and vision of the LIFE FOR SPECIES project in the field of species protection.
At the beginning of June, the LIFE FOR SPECIES team went on an exchange trip to Slovenia. A good introduction to the trip was a visit to the Slovenian Museum of Natural History, which is celebrating its 200th anniversary this year and looks back on the museum's work through the ages. A comprehensive story on the protection of the species was given by the zoologist, Dr. Boris Kryštufek. It was revealed that historically an important source of food in Slovenia in autumn and winter was the fat dormouse (Glis glis), which is a rare and specially protected mammal species in Latvia. Dormouse meat can still be bought in the autumn in Slovenia.
During the visit to the LIFE NarcIS project, we got acquainted with the process of establishing the Slovenian species protection system and how the species catalog and the Red Book are being created. At the same time, we shared our experience about the natural data management system OZOLS, project goals, objectives and communication.
During the day we joined an international seminar co-organized by two LIFE projects - LIFE Lynx and LIFE WolfAlps EU, where we studied the large carnivore exposure in Mashun, as well as participated in research demonstrations to monitor lynx activities - towing and searching for lynx prey. At the end of the day we got to know Lake Cerknica, where the restoration of the hydrological regime has been carried out, observation towers have been installed, as well as safe waste containers for bears. At the foot of the lake observation tower, the lesser Butterfly-orchid bloomed brightly, but even four black storks could be seen above the lake, which is also a rare species in Slovenia.
The trip ended in one of the most beautiful natural gems of Slovenia - Triglav National Park, learning about the current protection of peat bogs, as well as the protection of the species in the LIFE project Peatbogs in Triglav National Park, Pokljuka plateau. The tourism cognitive infrastructure created by the project is now being restored by the national project VrH Julijcev, which is working to improve the conservation status of various species (e.g. three - toe woodpecker, capercaillie, hazel grouse) in Triglav National Park. Conservation measures include, for example, the establishment of quiet areas in the most important areas of the park, marking them accordingly, as well as limiting the park's tourist load and closing roads to private transport as an alternative to offering public transport services.
April and May are the months of Pasqueflower bloom. In Latvia, spreading and meadow Pasqueflower can be found - both are very beautiful and decorative species, but endangered and specially protected.
In the spring, when the brown color still dominates in nature, in April or early May in the dry and sunny pine forests blooms spreading Pasqueflower Pulsatilla patens. It is more common in the eastern part of Latvia. The plant is softly hairy throughout and stands out with very decorative, bright purple flowers. Spreading Pasqueflowers bloom first and only later do the leaves appear.
Spreading and meadow Pasqueflowers are threatened by flower picking, as well as the habitat loss by overgrowth of light, sparse forests with bushes and the development of a thick layer of moss.
Representatives of the project LIFE FOR SPECIES Daugavpils University participated in Daugavpils Environment Day on May 5, as well as the awarding of the youth competition "Nature in my city" took place.
Representatives of the LIFE FOR SPECIES project from Daugavpils University participated in the Environment Day and activities dedicated to the opening of the Europe Direct South Latgale Center on May 5 by organizing an educational environmental workshop "Living Creatures of Dubrovina Park". Visitors to the workshop were introduced to the species of lichens and invertebrates found in the park.
Daugavpils cultural and educational institutions participated in the events dedicated to the Environment Day. Throughout the day, more than 1,500 students from 18 educational institutions in Daugavpils were offered various educational activities related to the environment and the European Green Deal.
Within the framework of the Environment Day, the conclusion of the youth competition "Nature in my city" organized by LIFE FOR SPECIES project took place, in which four youth teams from different Daugavpils schools presented their work. In the category "Environment" was presented one work "Daugavpils Traffic public transport ticket collection solution with further processing ", while in the category" Biodiversity" four works were received, of which three were presented and awarded:" Preservation of Biodiversity in the Recreation Area of Daugavpils City ", "Protection of the brown lon-eared bat population in the territory of Daugavpils" and "Bird habitat".
All participants of the competition, as well as work consultants - teachers - received valuable prizes: the books "Big Latvian Mushroom Book" and "Bird guide" published by SIA "Jāņa sēta".
We are happy for active young people who are interested in nature protection and for meeting in nature!
Category 'BIODIVERSITY
Idea: “Preservation of biological diversity in the recreation area of Daugavpils city”
Daugavpils 3rd Secondary School, 11th grade, Evita Teivāne, Kristīne Šervašidze
Consultants: Olga Kovaļova, teacher of natural sciences and geography, Sergejs Zabarovskis, teacher of biology
Idea: "Brown lon-eared bat"
Daugavpils Center Secondary School, 10th grade, Simona Hana Rasnače
Consultants - Tatjana Baranovska
Idea: “Protection of the brown elephant population in the territory of Daugavpils”
Daugavpils Center Secondary School, Anna Sedača, Viāna Bebriša, Romāns Streļčuks, Kirils Protņikovs
Consultant - teacher Tatjana Baranovska
Idea: "Birds' habitat"
Daugavpils 13th Secondary School, 10/11 class, Yevgeny Timofeyev, Yegor Ivanov
Consultants: biology teacher Jūlija Kanto
ENVIRONMENT category
Idea: Daugavpils Traffic public transport ticket collection solution with further processing
Daugavpils Secondary School of Technology lyceum, 11th grade students Olga Ļubarska and Katerīna Novaka
Consultant: biology teacher Inguna Kostenko
The Project “Threatened species in Latvia: improved knowledge, capacity, data and awareness” LIFE19 GIE/LV/000857 LIFE FOR SPECIES is implemented with the financial support of the LIFE Programme of the European Union and Latvian State Regional Development Agency. This publication reflects only authors’ view. Neither CINEA (European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency) nor European Commission are responsible of any use that may be made, or the information contained therein.
With the onset of spring and warmer weather, in the evenings one of the most common bat species in Latvia - brown long-eared bat could be observed.
The brown long-eared bat Plecotus auritus is a small (up to 5 cm long) flying mammal with gray-brown hair. It can be safely distinguished from other bats by its large and long ears. In flight, long ears are used for echolocation, but when not flying, the ears bend. Brown long-eared bats are wintering in various cellars, including caves. During hibernation, the bat hides its large ears under its wings.
In summer, brown long-eared bats' females form colonies in safe hiding places - attics, wall crevices, cavities, bird cages and elsewhere. Males also stay in similar places during the day. In Latvia, brown long-eared bats are widespread throughout the territory and are very common.
Brown long-eared bats feed at night, catching various invertebrates from leaves and branches - insects and their larvae, spiders.
Brown long-eared bats, like other bats found in Latvia and Europe, are especially protected. Bats are threatened by a variety of factors, such as the loss of habitats and food , changes in the landscape, such as intensification of agricultural lands, deforestation and winter disturbance.
The LIFE FOR SPECIES project is developing the criteria for inclusion and exclusion of species from the list of protected species, as well as the division of categories of protected species - according to the necessary protection measures and the damage caused in case of destruction of individuals. Based on the developed criteria, proposals for changes in legislation will be prepared.
The project species experts have compiled the first version of the criteria for inclusion of species in the list of specially protected species and the division into categories of protected species. It was presented to the general public at an online seminar on December 3, 2021.
The material is available HERE (in latvian).
The document explains the overview of the project activities and planned deliverables, as well as an insight into the criteria developed in the project for the selection and inclusion of taxa in the list of protected species and categories of specially protected species, based on several examples.
Everyone is invited to submit comments or suggestions on the current version of the criteria by 30 April 2022 by completing this QUESTIONNAIRE.
One of the goals of the LIFE FOR SPECIES project is to update the list of protected and endangered species based on scientifically based criteria, as well as to prepare proposals for changes in legislation. The current laws and regulations governing the protection of species have not been updated for more than 10 years. During this time, new scientific information on the occurrence of species and threatening factors has accumulated, as well as changes in the Latvian economy.
The Project “Threatened species in Latvia: improved knowledge, capacity, data and awareness” LIFE19 GIE/LV/000857 LIFE FOR SPECIES is implemented with the financial support of the LIFE Programme of the European Union and Latvian State Regional Development Agency. This publication reflects only authors’ view. Neither CINEA (European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency) nor European Commission are responsible of any use that may be made, or the information contained therein.
In March and April, a series of online lectures "Protected and Endangered Species in Latvia" will take place on the project's Facebook page. Lectures will be led by project species experts.
In order to encourage the general public to go to nature, see and get to know Latvia's rare, protected and endangered species, online lectures "Protected and Endangered Species in Latvia" will be organized on the LIFE FOR SPECIES Facebook page, led by project experts. Lectures will take place on weekday evenings and weekends so that as many audiences as possible have the opportunity to listen to the lectures. Lectures are planned for 1 hour, and after then it will be possible to ask questions to an expert.
In this series of lectures we will introduce six groups of species:
March 19 at 11:00 - INSECTS
The lecture will be led by entomologist Kristaps Vilks. Let's get to know the insects of the Latvian Red Book that live in the forest - where to look for them and how to see them?
March 23 at 17:30 - FUNGI
The lecture will be led by Diāna Meiere and Inita Dāniele, Latvia's best-known fungi specialists and project mushroom experts.
March 29 at 17:30 - AMPHIBIANS AND REPTILES
The lecture will be led by amphibian and reptile specialist, project expert Andris Čeirāns.
April 5 at 17:30 - BIRDS
The lecture will be led by Viesturs Ķerus, an ornithologist, Chairman of the Board of the Latvian Ornithological Society, and an expert in the project's bird species group.
April 8 at 17:30 - MOSSES AND LIVERVORTS
The lecture will be led by project moss expert Līga Strazdiņa
April 13 at 5:30 pm - PLANTS
The lecture will be given in cooperation with the Latvian Botanical Society, and will be led by botanists Pēteris Evarts - Bunders and Maija Medne.
Everyone who plans to participate in the project's photo competition "Green Treasures" is especially invited to the lectures, where it is still possible to send photos with the list of protected species and the species included in the Latvian Red Data Book by 31 August. Read more about the photo contest HERE.
See you in lectures!
The Project “Threatened species in Latvia: improved knowledge, capacity, data and awareness” LIFE19 GIE/LV/000857 LIFE FOR SPECIES is implemented with the financial support of the LIFE Programme of the European Union and Latvian State Regional Development Agency. This publication reflects only authors’ view. Neither CINEA (European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency) nor European Commission are responsible of any use that may be made, or the information contained therein.
In the month when the World Wetlands Day is celebrated every year, we will get to know the inhabitants of the water - European Medicinal leech.
The European Medicinal leech is a small segmented parasitic worm that inhabits various freshwater habitats and feeds on the blood of other vertebrates, such as fish, amphibians, birds and mammals. The European Medicinal leech lives in lakes, ponds and other waterbodies but in Latvia it is relatively rare and unevenly distributed, although there are enough suitable habitats. Europe is considered to be the center of the species' woorld distribution but with the help of humans, the leech has spread elsewhere, such as in North America and Africa.
Historically, the European Medicinal leech has been used in medical leech therapy. Even today, live Medicinal leeches are still used in plastic surgery and for other healing purposes. The first information about the use of leeches in medicine is known from Ancient India. In the 19th century leeches were used so widely and frequently that it led to the extinction of the species in several Western European countries. Today, the large population of European Medicinal leech remains only as local and small in micropopulations, and in most European countries this is considered an endangered or threatened species.
European Medicinal leech are threatened by the loss of suitable habitats due to drainage, lack of food sources, and the collection of leeches from natural populations for medical purposes.
The Project “Threatened species in Latvia: improved knowledge, capacity, data and awareness” LIFE19 GIE/LV/000857 LIFE FOR SPECIES is implemented with the financial support of the LIFE Programme of the European Union and Latvian State Regional Development Agency. This publication reflects only authors’ view. Neither CINEA (European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency) nor European Commission are responsible of any use that may be made, or the information contained therein.
Species experts from the LIFE FOR SPECIES project are working on species assessments, which also include field expeditions. The first field work season of the project has culminated in several interesting species finds.
The project's species experts are currently working to prepare species assessments, gathering information from a variety of data sources. There are species for which data is missing, so experts also doing the filed work to collect the missing data or update the information.
During the summer season of 2021, experts from the University of Latvia and Daugavpils University managed to observe several species that have not been seen or even found for the first time in Latvia for a long time!
Dwarf Cornels are still blooming in Latvia
On a hot summer's day, a team of project botanists from Daugavpils University went to search for the only Latvian place for the Swedish dwarf Cornel (Chamaepericlymenum suecicum), a small plant with a distinctive white flower. In Latvia, this species was known only in one place near Melnsila, but since 1991, when it was first found, there was no information about the status of the species. Although information on the location of the species was approximate and only available from herbarium data, the search was successful - botanists managed to find a vital dwarf Cornels’ population in the area of ~ 200 m2, where at least 300 plants were found, and half of them were blooming.
Moss finally found after 20 years
In the season of 2021, a moss expert from the University of Latvia discovered for the first time in Latvia a new moss species - Rugel's Anomodon Moss Anomodon rugelii, which was located in a small river that periodically dries out on the border of Ogre and Madona counties. Moss grows on granite stones and tree trunks. It is distinguished from other mosses f genus Anomodon by its brown leaf veins. In Europe, Rugel’s Anomodon Moss is a mountain species, it is known in a few places in our neighboring countries: in the south of Finland and Sweden, in Estonia, in the Leningrad region of Russia, as well as in Poland and Germany.
The "resurrection" of the extinct lichen species
150 years ago, a naturalist Brutan found the only known location for lichen species Sphaerophorus globosus in Slitere. Researchers in Latvia considered this species to be regionally extinct - the nearest are known from the Estonian islands and Scandinavia. The lichen grows on tree trunks, also on soil and rocks. Elsewhere in the world, the spread of Sphaerophorus globosus is linked to mountainous regions. In the autumn of 2021, during a visit to Līgatne, researchers from Daugavpils University found Sphaerophorus globosus on one of the sandstone rocks and counted as many as 45 individuals. So, the lichen - Sphaerophorus globosus is not extinct from Latvia! Lichen requires high humidity, which is ensured by the river next to the outcrop in the deposit. So far, Sphaerophorus globosus has gone unnoticed, apparently because it resembles the very common lichens of genus Cladina. The Sphaerophorus globosus has a leaf with a central lobe, while the branches have rounded, spherical growths.
In the LIFE FOR SPECIES project, fieldwork will continue in the 2022 season. We wish a lot of new and significant discoveries to the team of project species experts!
The Project “Threatened species in Latvia: improved knowledge, capacity, data and awareness” LIFE19 GIE/LV/000857 LIFE FOR SPECIES is implemented with the financial support of the LIFE Programme of the European Union and Latvian State Regional Development Agency. This publication reflects only authors’ view. Neither CINEA (European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency) nor European Commission are responsible of any use that may be made, or the information contained therein.
The White-throated Dipper has been chosen for the protected species in January - a fairly common wintering bird in Latvia near fast and non-freezing rivers, but a very rare nesting bird.
The White-throated Dipper Cinclus cinclus is up to 20 cm long, round-shaped bird with a short tail and a pointed beak. It could be easily confused with a snow-capped river stone, as the chest is white and the rest of the body is dark brown. According to the name of the bird, the White-throated Dipper has adapted to life near the water - it feeds on small aquatic animals (insect larvae, small fish, crayfish), which are caught diving in the water, walking on the riverbed and digging the ground. Fast, rocky rivers are the typical habitat of the White-throated Dipper.
The White-throated Dipper is found on the Eurasian continent, in mountainous regions along rivers in rocky areas. Birds nesting in Scandinavia come to Latvia in winter, but in suitable climatic conditions White-throated Dippers can also choose to nest in Latvia. The White-throated Dipper nests in hard-to-reach places in crevices in rocks or masonry, under bridges, as well as enjoys nesting in specially placed nestboxes.
The species is included in the list of specially protected species, as the White-throated Dipper is a rare nester in Latvia, and it inhabits parts of rivers that have have not been affected by humans and are rapid. IUCN data show that the global population of water thrushes is declining.
The Project “Threatened species in Latvia: improved knowledge, capacity, data and awareness” LIFE19 GIE/LV/000857 LIFE FOR SPECIES is implemented with the financial support of the LIFE Programme of the European Union and Latvian State Regional Development Agency. This publication reflects only authors’ view. Neither CINEA (European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency) nor European Commission are responsible of any use that may be made, or the information contained therein.
In December, protected species of the month - common dormouse (Muscardinus avellanarius) is currently hibernating under the thick snowdrifts.
This year we are gifted with the typical winter - cool weather and thick snowdrifts that cover the land abundantly throughout the country. The animals, which are active in warm weather, now have gone to hibernation. At the top level of the forest soil, our protected species of the month of December - common domouse - is hibernating. It is a very small, profuse rodent, which can reach 8-9 cm in length. The animal has rusty hair, a long tail and sharp claws so that it can climb trees, shrubs and vegetation. The common dormouse is omnivorous - it eats fruit, berries, flowers, buds, as well as various small invertebrates and even bird eggs. The animal inhabits deciduous and mixed forest forests, including shrubs. It is important that the forest cover has lush and diverse vegetation providing food base. The common dormouse lives in tree hollows, often - it also inhabits artificial birdhouses.
The species is rarely and unevenly distributed in Latvia. In the world, common dormouse is found in Europe, including Asia Minor. The species is threatened by a lack of habitats and possible climate change, such as warm winters.
The Project “Threatened species in Latvia: improved knowledge, capacity, data and awareness” LIFE19 GIE/LV/000857 LIFE FOR SPECIES is implemented with the financial support of the LIFE Programme of the European Union and Latvian State Regional Development Agency. This publication reflects only authors’ view. Neither CINEA (European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency) nor European Commission are responsible of any use that may be made, or the information contained therein.