For the ninth time, the BPWW Management GmbH organised an event in 2015 to celebrate GEO Biodiversity Day as initiated by the renowned German nature magazine GEO. This gives us an opportunity to explore alternately a community in Lower Austria or a district in Vienna and to get the local inhabitants excited about the biodiversity on their own patch.

In the course of this Wienerwald BR project, in Co operation with Forstamt und Landwirtschaftsbetrieb der Stadt Wien (MA 49) and ÖBf AG, the wood is sampled several times a year over an observation period of 10 years, trapping, collecting and identifying beetles and fungi respectively.

Hazel dormice are difficult to find, as they are no bigger than a thumb and live mostly in dense undergrowth. Its secretive life style means that there is hardly anything known about this small mammal.

In line with the goals laid down by UNESCO, the core zones of the Wienerwald BR are designated to conserve biological diversity, to monitor ecosystems exposed to anthropogenic disturbance and to implement research projects. Through conservation by non-intervention in natural processes, it is hoped that these areas will become the ‘virgin forests of tomorrow’.

The initiation of natural regeneration is one of the most important but also most difficult tasks in the management of semi-natural forests. The extent of benefit from light absorption has a major impact on the regenerative success of beechwoods and oakwoods.

In order to create a solid data resource, baseline surveys were conducted in all core zones of theWienerwald BR to establish their actual condition. This kind of ‘stock-taking’ forms the basis for current and future research projects.

A number of questions were explored in connection with the project: e.g. which properties are linked with which soil types, what are the changes in availability of water to plants, and how good is the nutrient supply in various locations?

In conjunction with the project entitled ’Integrative, sustainable wildlife management in the Wienerwald BR’, criteria and corresponding indicators were developed for the sustainable management of wildlife and their habitats.