The Turmkopf natural forest reserve is located in the southern district of Augsburg, about 3 km southwest of the road from Bobingen to Straßberg. It covers an area of 14 hectares and was designated as a natural forest reserve in 1991. The area is located in the state forest and is managed by the Zusmarshausen forestry operation of the Bavarian State Forests.
Location and soil composition:
The reserve is located on a slope sloping eastwards towards the Wertach valley. The soils consist of sandy-gravelly marine deposits from the Tertiary period and wind-borne loess deposits from the Ice Age. There are both moderately fresh, gravelly soils and moister, loamy soils.
Forest communities:
In the upper areas, the woodruff-beech forest dominates on fresh, nutrient-rich sites. The moister and often steeper slope areas are characterized by the ground elder-sycamore-ash mixed forest. The admixture of spruce and Japanese larch indicates earlier forest management.
Ecological features:
The herb layer is home to typical forest species such as woodruff, Himalayan balsam, woody woundwort and mountain golden nettle. The reserve provides a habitat for the grey woodpecker and the stock dove. Numerous water outfalls and moist flattenings in the slopes are ideal for various snail and fungal species, including the uncut crystal snail and the Moravian coalberry.
Forest development:
The reserve has a 100 m x 100 m fenced research area. Regular studies are carried out there on the development of the trees, dead wood and forest regeneration. Between 2003 and 2013, the number of tree trunks remained almost constant at 390 trees per hectare, while the wood stock increased from 774 to 923 cubic meters per hectare. The deadwood proportion was recently at 17 cubic metres per hectare.
The Turmkopf natural forest reserve is a valuable example of natural forest development in Bavaria and offers insights into the dynamics of near-natural forests.