The Rya Forest (Swedish: ''Rya skog'') is a

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

in Gothenburg, Sweden. It is located on the

Hisingen Hisingen () is the fifth-largest island of Sweden (after Gotland, Öland, Södertörn and Orust), with an area of . It is a river island, formed by the split of the Göta Älv at Bohus, and is defined to the east and south by the main arm of th ...

island, on the northern bank of the Göta River. It has an area of 17 hectares. Established in 1928, it is the oldest nature reserve in

Västra Götaland County Västra Götaland County ( sv, Västra Götalands län) is a county or '' län'' on the western coast of Sweden. The county is the second most populous of Sweden's counties and it comprises 49 municipalities (''kommuner''). Its population of ...

. The reserve lies in the middle of a busy industrial area, close to oil refineries and the Ryaverket sewage treatment plan. In spite of that, it displays a diverse flora and fauna, typical for a marsh forest,

alder Alders are trees comprising the genus ''Alnus'' in the birch family Betulaceae. The genus comprises about 35 species of monoecious trees and shrubs, a few reaching a large size, distributed throughout the north temperate zone with a few sp ...

being the most common tree. The age of the trees reaches 200 years, while some of the oaks are a few centuries old. Many species of lichens,

moss Mosses are small, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic division Bryophyta (, ) '' sensu stricto''. Bryophyta ('' sensu lato'', Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryophytes, which comprise liverworts, mosses, and ...

es and

fungi A fungus (plural, : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of Eukaryote, eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and Mold (fungus), molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified ...

have been found. In the spring, the meadows in the reserve are covered with blooming

wood anemones The phrase wood anemone is used in common names for several closely related species of flowering plants in genus '' Anemonoides'', including: * '' Anemonoides nemorosa'', the ''wood anemone'' in Europe and Asia * '' Anemonoides quinquefolia'', the ...

. The forest houses rare insects, butterflies and beetles. With its many birds, such as the

hawfinch The hawfinch (''Coccothraustes coccothraustes'') is a passerine bird in the finch family Fringillidae. It is the only species placed in the genus ''Coccothraustes''. Its closest living relatives are the Chinese grosbeak (''Eophona migratoria'' ...

, the

tawny owl The tawny owl (''Strix aluco''), also called the brown owl, is commonly found in woodlands across Europe to western Siberia, and has seven recognized subspecies. It is a stocky, medium-sized owl, whose underparts are pale with dark streaks, ...

, and the Eurasian woodcock, it has also attracted the interest of ornithologists.

References

{{Reflist Protected areas established in 1928 Nature reserves in Sweden Gothenburg Hisingen Tourist attractions in Gothenburg 1928 establishments in Sweden