Niedersfelder Hochheide - Niedersfeld High Altitude Heath north of Winterberg

High altitude or mountain heaths are a habitat for specialist flora and fauna. These include the slow-growing dwarf shrub species that dominate the almost treeless landscape:

Heather, Blueberry and Lingonberry, as well as the much rarer Crowberry and Alpine Blueberry. In summer, the heath is decorated with the glowing yellow flowers of Arnica, an old medicinal plant.

In the area you have a good chance of seeing a Great Grey Shrike sitting at the top of a Spruce tree, or hearing a calling Cuckoo, a bird that has become rare in many regions. The large herd of goats and heathland sheep known as "Heidschnucke" is an interesting sight. Once a year they are put out to graze the area. This preserves the wide, open heathland interspersed with individual trees.