Ardennes

Located between La Roche-en-Ardenne and its small hamlet of Maboge, the site corresponds to ancient alluvial meadows extending along a meander of the Ourthe River, at an altitude of 230 m. It also includes a drainage ditch in its western part. In the 2000s, the area underwent restoration works aimed at expanding the area of these meadows, to the detriment of spruce plantations that shaded the valley floor. The site is entirely included in the Natura 2000 network and several plots are currently part of a private nature reserve of 3.3 ha, managed by the non-profit organization Natagora and undergoing approval from the Walloon Region. In addition to a particularly diverse flora, this isolated and very quiet place housed, until the 1990s, a small population of two specialized day butterflies, the copper of bistort (Lycaena helle) and the pearl of bistort (Boloria eunomia), typical of the wet meadows of the Ardennes valley floors but in widespread decline. The beaver (Castor fiber) has been present for at least a decade, significantly impacting the environment.

Type: Site of Great Biological Interest (SGIB)

La biodiversité en Wallonie