The German Green Belt   

• Stretching nearly 1,400 kilometers from the Baltic Sea beach at Priwall to the border triangle area at Hof in the Vogtland region, the German Green Belt is one of the world’s most unusual nature reserves. For decades during the Cold War, this strip of land marked the Iron Curtain that divided East and West Germany. Guard towers, fences, barbed wire, minefields, automatic firing devices, and military patrols kept people apart, clearing settlements and civilian activity. It created a no-man’s-land where nature quietly took over. When the Berlin Wall fell in November 1989, conservationists realized the former “death strip” had become a wildlife haven ? a connected green corridor of forests, wetlands, and grasslands. The diversity of the landscape gave refuge to many rare and endangered plants and animals. Species found there include rare orchids such as the lady’s slipper, insects like the clubtail dragonfly and marsh fritillary, and birds like the whinchat and black stork. Visitors might also spot otters swimming in streams or elusive predators, such as wildcats and lynx, moving through dense forests. Although the Green Belt is now protected in many areas, some “gaps” remain. Efforts are ongoing to preserve the full length of the corridor. Yesel Kang Copy Editor junior/1768462299/1613367801