Třeboňsko
Ruda u Kojákovic Nature Reserve
The nature reserve covers a shallow western part of the Ruda fishpond, located 1.5 km south-west of the village of Branná. It is a part of the fishpond flooding area with the islands and vast stands of littoral vegetation fluently passing into the coniferous forest. It is a significant botanical and ornithological site. A part of the peaty flooding area of the fishpond is formed by the recessive non-cultivated meadows with the purple moor grass (Molinia caerulea), hairy reed grass (Calamagrostis villosa), common heathern (Calluna vulgaris), with the scattered leopard's bane (Arnica montana), saw-wort (Serratula tinctoria), brideflower (Achillea ptarmica), devil's-bit (Succisa pratensis) and hogfennel (Peucedanum palustre). The tree-species stands with pines, birches and willows on the rolled up levees directly change into the overflown stands of sedges which take up the largest areas in the flooding area of the fishpond. The site is, above all, one of a few Czech nesting places of the black tern (Clidonias niger) which forms a small colony of about five couples. A total of eight species of amphibians and the moor frog’s (Rana arvalis) reproduction were observed here. Common species of mammals from the neighbouring habitats occur in the reserve territory. Also up to five Eurasian elks (Alces alces) were repeatedly observed here. European otter (Lutra lutra) lives here permanently.
