Nature reserve "Bahnwald"
The approx. 13.7 hectare nature reserve encompasses the forest area on the western surface of a former marshalling yard between the Schwerte-Fröndenberg railway line, the "Zum Wellenbad" road and the eastern city limits. Here the forest continues on the Holzwickeder side and is part of the nature reserve "Bahnwald" of the landscape plan Holzwickede, which includes the "Geisecker reservoir", a water of outstanding ornithological importance.
This nature reserve is a former gravel area of the Federal Railway with individual islands made of concrete slab foundations. The area was reforested with poplars after the war, for which planting holes were blasted into the concrete slab foundations. This results in difficult reforestation using conventional planting methods.
The "Bahnwald" is an island-like habitat with a high ecological development potential for fauna and flora. It offers habitat especially for moths, ground beetles, amphibians, reptiles, bats and for some. Endangered bird species such as hawk, common buzzard, spotted and small woodpecker, various warbler species, oriole, wryneck, nightingale, etc.