Czterdzieści lat strefowej ochrony gatunków w polskich lasach Część 2. Zagadnienia przyrodnicze

The main objective of this series of articles is to present the range and complexity of aspects and problems associated
with the implementation of zonal species protection in Polish forests between 1983 and 2024, which may be useful
for its further improvement. The aim of this publication, the second in the series, is to address the natural issues concerning
the functioning of protection zones in forests.
The research methodology is consistent throughout the entire series of articles. A review of legal acts from 1983 to 2024,
a systematic literature review, and the snowball method were used. A systematic review of literature from 1984 to 2023
was conducted using the bibliographic database of the Forest Research Institute (keywords: ‘ochron* strefow*’, ‘stref* ochron*’)
and the SCOPUS database (keywords: ‘zonal protection’ AND ‘Poland’; ‘zone protection’ AND ‘Poland’). From the results
obtained (483 items), 28 publications were selected after further screening and used to varying extents in different parts of the series
of articles; in this article, 27 items were used. Together with the literature identified through using the snowball method, these
works were thoroughly examined for the aspects and issues of zonal protection in forests that they present.
This article addresses issues such as the list of zonal species (Appendix 1), protected sites, intensity of zonal protection
(Table 1), geographical distribution of zones, quality of trees and forests in zones or used by zonal species, threats to zonal species
(including predation – Table 2, economic activities, zone penetration), the impact of zone protection on the situation of protected
species, as well as of other species and habitats.
It can be noted that most data and information have been published on the zonal protection of birds, while significantly fewer
publications address the zonal protection of selected lichens, mammals, and reptiles, and there are no references to protected plants
and insects. This gap should be addressed to reliably confirm the purpose and effectiveness of the zone protection introduced
for these groups, and to further improve it. While the concept of protection zones is valid, it should be noted that such zones do not
always guarantee a species' survival in a given location. This is because survival depends on numerous biotic, abiotic,
and anthropogenic factors and conditions, both within the zone and in other areas used by the species protected by the zone.
Therefore, awareness of this fact and broader cooperation are needed, not only from foresters, but also from private owners
of forests and open areas used by zonal species, as well as from the wider society that uses forests.