Imagine that you go on a hike from one of the farms in the hills up to the highest peaks in the area. At the beginning of the trip, you will mainly see mountain birches and a few mountain ash and aspen trees. In some places that have good access to nutrients and water you will see tall perennials. After leaving the mountain birch forests, you will find some hillsides that are more lush with tall forbs and alpine sow-thistle. Alpine sow-thistle is a tall plant with purple flowers. Its juicy stalks taste good in spring and are edible. European goldenrod and wood cranesbill are also common plants at this altitude. Mountain arnica is a rare species and likes to grow in areas where haymaking and grazing have taken place. Cloudberries are often found in the transition between mountain birch forests and the bare mountains. During the early summer, the cloudberry marshes are covered in white blossom. There is a lot to look forward to here if the frost or rainy weather doesn’t destroy the white flowers before they have time to set fruit.

You then reach the bare mountains where many of us go on a hike and step on small, anonymous plants without knowing it. These plants are often the ones that make up the vast majority of the vegetation in the area. Common species here are various plants belonging to the heather family such as blueberries, lingonberries, alpine azalea, alpine bearberries and crowberries. There are also many types of rushes and sedges. Some of these include wavy hair-grass, common cottongrass and matgrass. Matgrass is a late-growing, stiff grass with little nutritional content for grazing animals. Matgrass grows in tussocks and is often found in abandoned mountain meadows or other places where there have been a lot of grazing animals. Common butterwort isn’t a true alpine plant but can also be found in the area. It has violet flowers and is often found growing on relatively dry marshland. Common butterwort is a carnivorous plant. Small insects get stuck in the sticky mucus on its leaves and provide the plant with an extra supply of nutrients. Dwarf birch, a smaller relative of the mountain birch, is also common at this altitude.

Snow can be found on some of the high hills well into the summer. These are places where you can often find dwarf willow, our smallest species of tree. The perennial herb called the purple gentian is a common plant found many places in the protected area. It is especially prevalent in the northern parts of Bykle. There are long traditions of using purple gentian in both folk medicine and conventional medicine right up to the present. It has been used to treat intestinal worms and digestion problems. The root contains a number of bitter substances that can be easily tasted when chewed. Finally, you find yourself standing among the peaks in the highest parts of the area, approximately 1100 – 1200 meters above sea level. There are a lot of bare mountains but also a number of plants that manage to hold on tight. Some of these plants look like grayish-green grass, such as curved wood-rush. Another plant that follows you all the way to the top is wavy meadow-grass. This plant grows in small, blueish-green tussocks. Unlike some other types of grass, wavy meadow-grass is very soft to the touch. Alpine lady’s-mantle and highland rush are also plants that are common at this altitude.

Finally, we have to mention lichen, many species of which can be found in these hills. Lichen consists of a fungus and an alga that live together in symbiosis. The fungus provides water and minerals, while the alga provides nutrients through photosynthesis. It is common to categorize the different species of lichen according to the way they grow; crustose, foliose and fructicose lichens. Crinkled snow lichen, star-tipped cup lichen, shrubby cup lichen and reindeer cup lichen are fructicose lichens. These all serve as important winter fodder for the reindeer.

Fauna

Setesdal Vesthei Ryfylkeheiane Protected Landscape is also habitat for a number of birds and mammals. Some of them live here permanently, while others wander through the area from time to time. Reindeer are one of the most important animals that can be found here. SVR forms the core area of the southernmost wild reindeer population in Norway and Europe. As nomads of the mountains, they migrate over large areas searching for the best grazing grounds and their familiar calving grounds. They often use the same migratory routes between the various areas. SVR is located relatively close to the coast, and this affects the wild reindeer’s living conditions. There are not many good winter grazing grounds consisting of large fields of lichen. Some years, the winter grazing grounds become frozen when mild weather is followed by freezing temperatures. Read more about wild reindeer

Moose and red deer have become increasingly common to see in SVR. Especially in late summer and into autumn, they find good grazing conditions at altitudes of 700 – 800 meters. There are also many places where they migrate between the valleys when moving between winter grazing grounds and summer grazing grounds. None of the four large predators live permanently in the protected area. Wolves and wolverines roam through the area from time to time. The lynx is more common but prefers to stay in rugged areas of forest down towards the villages where there is better access to breeding grounds and prey (roe deer). The red fox is one of the smaller predators that is common in the area. Arctic foxes are sometimes found here but they often face too much competition from the red foxes. Weasels and stoats are common here, but pine martens are mostly found close to the forested areas on the outskirts of the protected area.

Beavers, the construction workers of the forest, can be found in many of the small watercourses up to 700 – 800 meters above sea level. Beavers make use of mountain birches and sometimes aspen trees to build their dams and lodges. The beaver is a nocturnal animal and is usually seen late in the evening or early in the morning. The most common rodents here are lemmings, short-tailed field voles and bank voles, and some years there are extreme numbers of these tiny animals. Small rodents are important food for birds of prey, and they have a better chance of raising their chicks during years where there are huge numbers of small rodents.

Fish

Trout disappeared from many of the mountain lakes due to acid rain. Today, the precipitation is less acidic, and many lakes and watercourses have been chalked and restocked with fish. Up until the 2000s, restocking the watercourses with brook trout was common. Today, trout are the most common fish found in the lakes.

Birds

The hillsides would seem empty without any birds. The European golden plover is a faithful companion for many hikers. Its rather melancholy and simple song makes it an easy bird to recognize. Bluethroats, northern wheatears and meadow pipits are the most common smaller birds that visitors might see. Visitors will often find European dippers and waders such as redshanks and wood sandpipers in and around the local watercourses. Common scoters and black-throated divers occasionally breed and nest in the protected area. Willow ptarmigans are common throughout the entire mountainous area despite a decline in numbers in recent years. During the spring, male ptarmigans cause a lot of fuss when trying to secure the best nesting sites.

You might see rock ptarmigan if you venture to the top of the highest and most barren peaks in the area. The rock ptarmigan is a slightly smaller and grayer relative of the willow ptarmigan. Both rock ptarmigan and willow ptarmigan change the color of their plumage to white in winter.

There are a number of birds of prey and owls that live in the protected area. Maybe you will see a golden eagle soaring high up with its outstretched wings, or a gyrfalcon diving after a ptarmigan on the ground. Rough-legged buzzards also nest in some parts of the protected area. Owls are often active at night and don’t really show themselves during the day. Short-eared owls are common here, while the eagle owl, Norway’s largest owl, only nests here occasionally. All birds of prey are easily disturbed by human activity, and successful breeding often occurs during years where there are large numbers of small rodents.

Finally, we have to mention the garbage collectors of the mountains. Hooded crows and ravens often turn up in search of anything that looks edible. They have an absolute feast if they find the carcasses of any large animals that have died.