Biosphere Reserve Middle Elbe

The Biosphere Reserve Middle Elbe is a biosphere reserve located in the German federal state of Saxony-Anhalt, a state that lies to the northeast of central Germany. A biosphere reserve is a designation given by UNESCO in the year 1979 under its Program of Man and the Biosphere MAB. The Biosphere Reserve Middle Elbe extends along the Elbe River between Wittenberg in the east via Dessau and Ross Lau up to Gommern. The unspoiled natural topography is a contributing aspect of tourism in the Saxony-Anhalt region. The landscape along the Elbe and Mulde is sprinkled with horseshoe lakes, flood ditches, water meadows and Middle Europe's biggest continuous water meadow forest.

The Biosphere Reserve Middle Elbe with an area spanning 43,000 ha is the biggest protected region of Saxony-Anhalt, stretching over six administrative districts of Dessau and Magdeburg. In 1988, the Middle Elbe Biosphere Reserve was extended with wide areas around Dessau and Wurlitzer. All these were led to the formation of the Biosphere Reserve Middle Elbe. Apart from including the Elbe and Mulde, it also embraces the floodplains as a unique biotope which is a haven for several communities of endangered species. In 2005, Dr. Frank Dziock discovered a new insect species Brachyopa silviae of the genus Brachyopa, which has only 13 species are known in the Continent.

The Biosphere Reserve Middle Elbe is known by this name since March 2006. It comprises a biodiversity of 1000 botanical species, 250 avian species, 130 bees' species and 50 dragonfly species. Among other things, wild fruit, sycamore, Siberian irises, water nuts, floating fern and water weed grow here. As a result of the threat to the continued existence of the ecological niches of animals and plants that inhabit in the water and swamps, the Biosphere Reserve Middle Elbe requests visitors to adhere to their regulations.