The Lower Oder Valley is home to numerous natural treasures, which are protected in a variety of ways in both Germany and Poland. To strengthen the relationship between people and nature and to raise awareness of – and thus acceptance of – protected areas, it is vital that these areas are accessible and can be explored, for example through guided excursions. 

As part of the German-Polish Interreg project MoPA (Monitoring of Protected Areas with a particular focus on biodiversity and the sustainable development of the areas) within the Pomerania Euroregion, the project partners organised a canoe trip starting from Siadlo Dolny on Friday, 26 June 2026. Led by experts from the Institute of Biology at the University of Szczecin, the group set off in kayaks into the Polish Landscape Park ‘Miedzyodrze’. 

The area is a river polder that was abandoned after 1945, within which semi-natural water dynamics have been able to establish themselves over the decades. Nature has reclaimed this formerly agricultural area, which is now a refuge for life along the River Oder. Participants learnt about the area’s development and had the opportunity to document their observations in the aquatic habitats using the citizen science app iNaturalist. One of the project’s aims is to make such citizen science methods more popular, with a view to establishing them as a complement to the nature monitoring carried out by authorities of protected areas. The observed species included numerous macrophytes, such as the widespread native floating-leaved plants yellow water lily (Nuphar lutea L.) and white water lily (Nymphaea alba L.), as well as several pondweed species (Potamogeton spp.) and the water caltrop (Trapa natans L.). Among the molluscs, the Chinese pond mussel (Sinanodonta woodiana I. Lea, 1934) stood out as an introduced large mussel species. A white-tailed eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla L.) also accompanied the group at times. 

Members and guest researchers of the BRI took part in this excursion. The event offered an opportunity to get to know the Lower Oder Valley Landscape Park, gain a deeper understanding of the BRI project MoPA, connect with Polish partners, and foster team building.