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Marginal habitats (ecological islands), i.e. areas of land isolated by natural or artificial means from the surrounding land and not in agricultural use, fulfil an important function in agricultural landscape. They include linear objects, such as balks, boundary strips, paths and side spaces, forest edges, or river and stream banks, as well as non-linear objects, such as small peatbogs, clumps of trees, or extensively used meadows. Such objects are characterized by much greater biological diversity than the surrounding fields or intensively used meadows. They can be regarded as refuge for plants and animals. Marginal habitats can be protected in the form of ecological grounds or under the system of financial compensations, providing incentives for farmers to maintain them [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the biology part of the „From learning about it to liking it” section, we continue the presentation of common animals occurring in every meadow, in every body of water, in every urban neighbourhood. We also provide proposed worksheets for eventual use. They include assignments, which on one hand, serve to repeat the material, and on the other hand, tell the student what to look for when observing the behaviour of animals in the field. The sheets draw attention to important details about the anatomy of the animal, which is used to gain new information, and also shows methods of observing and capturing them. They also teach how to process the information obtained and to draw conclusions based on it. In addition, we present an example of properly planned homework in the worksheet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Meadows constitute more than 50% of the area of the Pisia valley. The flora existing in these meadows consists of about 200 species, of which 150 can be considered as typical of such habitats. The plants include 14 engendered, protected species. The flora of the Pisia valley meadows forms at least 15 semi-natural plant communities falling into four classes. The biotopes belonging to the class Molinio-Arrhenatheretea dominate. Among them are rare, engendered: Molinietum caeruleae, Cericetum cespitosae and Arrhenatheretum elatioris. The meadow-type biotopes found in the Pisia valley have been transformed substantially as a result of intensive utilisation and changes in the habitats in which they occur. Five of the plant communities have been designated as highly engendered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]