The Glauenberg mire landscape, which is located between the district of Entlebuch, Lake Lungern and Lake Sarnen, covers an area of 130 square kilometres and is Switzerland’s biggest mire landscape. The area is an important habitat for the highly endangered capercaillie species.

The Glauenberg mire landscape extends from the Pilatuskette mountain range to Glaubenbüelen pass. It is Switzerland’s largest mire landscape. At 130 km2 in area, it is slightly bigger than Lake Lucerne.

The landscape features numerous mires, forest areas and Alpine pastures which, in some places, are closely dovetailed with each other. Human beings have used and left their mark on this landscape for centuries.

The mountain torrents have cut deep into the flysch. Flysch is a soft and relatively impermeable stone. Slopes in such areas are prone to landslides.

The varied mire landscape with individual shrub and tree groups provides good living conditions for grouse (capercaillie, common black grouse and hazel grouse). Lynx also live in this region. The first two lynx in Switzerland were released in Obwalden on the opposite side in the Melchtal valley in 1971.

Nature reserves and landscape protection areas
A large part of this area is listed, inter alia, in the following federal inventories:

• Federal Inventory of Landscapes and Natural Monuments of National Importance (BLN object no 1608 “Flyschlandschaft Hagleren-Glaubenberg-Schlieren”)
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• Inventory of Mire Landscapes (object no 15 “Glaubenberg”)
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• Interactive map browser displaying the object included in the BLN (available in German and French)
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Other links

• All of the federal Swiss inventories can be displayed on an interactive map using this map browser (available in German and French)
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• Detailed information on the effects of outdoor sport and leisure activities on nature (available in German and French)
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• Further information on the grouse
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• Further information on the lynx (in German, French and Italian)
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