A small protected river valley on the upper Wupper, safeguarding floodplain fragments and rare aquatic habitats in the Bergisches Land.
Wipperaue Eulenbecke
Wipperaue Eulenbecke is a small nature reserve in the municipality of Marienheide in the Oberbergischer Kreis of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It protects a stretch of the upper Wipper, the headwater reach of the Wupper river, along with adjacent floodplain fragments, wet meadows, and a network of small tributaries.
The reserve is recognised for its near-natural course of the Wipper, where shallow water zones, gravel banks, and small pools create habitat for sensitive freshwater species. It also includes a section around the Holzwipper reservoir, where water is partly diverted toward the nearby Brucher Talsperre. The area forms one component of the larger Natura 2000 site Wupper östlich Wuppertal, anchoring floodplain and brook ecology within a heavily forested, mid-elevation landscape.
By focusing on floodplain fragments rather than large wilderness, the reserve demonstrates how small protected areas can play a disproportionate role in linking aquatic habitats across a wider river system. Its combination of floodplain woodland, wet grassland, and a clear, structured headwater stream gives it conservation significance well beyond its compact surface area.
