Overview

• Fieldwork is underway across the entire 1,400-kilometer stretch from the Baltic Sea to the Vogtland region.
• Sampling focuses on flying insects such as rare checkered butterflies, ducat fritillaries and wild bees, with specimens set for genetic analysis.
• The Federal Agency for Nature Conservation and BUND are funding the project to provide scientific evidence of the site’s universal natural value.
• Decades of restricted human access have allowed the Green Belt to become a refuge for species requiring cooler temperatures in the face of climate change.
• Environmentalists are pressing for the Green Belt to attain full National Natural Monument status, building on its existing 80% legal protection.