Fish Ponds
Ponds
of Przygodzice are situated between Southern Great-Poland and Lower Silesia.
They are spread between Przygodzice (8 km south from Ostrow Wielkopolski) and
Antonin (17 km south from Ostrow Wielkopolski). At present in the Region of
Przygodzice there are over 700 hectares of ponds, situated in two big complexes:
Przygodzice-Trzcielny and Debnica-Kocieba.
Those reservoirs have been created artificially, but some of them with time have
changed into shallow lakes.
Out of all the described species in this area the most abundant is the world of
birds. Nearly 260 species were affirmed here which constitutes for over 60% of
all bird species affirmed in the whole country.
170 of the species are hatching-birds which are 70% of all hatching-birds
affirmed in Poland.
16 species of hatching-birds trying to settled down, or nesting here, recently
appeared in the Polish Red Book of Animals.
Nearly all of the birds of this area are under protection.
The Ponds of Przygodzice are included on the list of important places for
preservation of the disappearing populations of birds in Europe, made by the
International Council for Bird Protection (former: CBP, at present: Bird Life).
Years of research and protection efforts contributed, in 1995, to forming of the
"Landscape Protection Area of Ostrzeszow Hills and Odolanow Valley".
In the following year, the biggest in Poland (over 87 000 ha) Landscape Park "Valley
of Barycz River" was brought into existence. At the same time, thanks to The
Polish Council for Bird Protection (PCBP, in Polish: OTOP - Ogolnopolskie
Towarzystwo Ochrony Ptakow), Ponds of Przygodzice became an official mainstay
for birds of European importance called "The Valley of The Upper Barycz River".
"The Valley of The Upper Barycz River" also appeared on the list "Birds
Mainstays of Poland", among 117 other Polish mainstays. In spite of all those
efforts to protect the wildlife of the region, local flora and fauna are still
not under an adequate protection. Which is, of course, only proved by the strong
farming industry taking place in this area. This industry believes food
producing to be the main role of the region. Many of the agricultural procedures
are an obvious danger to the birds. Some birds die because of the fertilizers,
others because of hunting.
We need to provide our Valley, and especially its "occupants", with an adequate
way of preservation, because it is nearly the only such valuable territory in
the southern part of Great-Poland, and one of very few in the whole country.
The Ponds of Przygodzice play an immense role for water birds. Among other
things, the lack of any other bigger water reservoir in our administrative area
makes birds settle down here.
That is why we must do our best to bring into an existence the bird reserve "Ponds
of Przygodzice", in which nature would find a bit more place among local
agriculture.
We must remember that if we want to make a bird reserve here, we should obey a
few rules and assumptions.
Some of them are the following ones:
-keeping breeding fish in ponds - this is one of the most important factors
allowing such a huge number of water birds in our area.
-banning cutting down trees and bushes overgrowing dikes, riversides and
riverbanks because of the important role they are playing in preventing erosion.
-controlling deadlines of letting out and flooding the ponds,
-banning rebuilding reservoirs in a way which can be dangerous for the birds.