Events in Staicele and at Gūtmaņala present the natural treasures of the “Salacas ieleja” Nature Park

On 22 May, the International Day for Biological Diversity, a nature education event took place around Gūtmaņala cave, bringing together the 15 most knowledgeable school classes in Latvia, who won their place in the competition “Nature Day – 2026 nature symbols”.

Participants could explore biodiversity in person at 17 interactive discovery stations. One of them – “The river – a stream of life” – was prepared by the Nature Conservation Agency’s LIFE IS SALACA project team. The station was designed to introduce the natural treasures of the “Salacas ieleja” (Salaca Valley) Nature Park and to reinforce knowledge about the Salaca River.

Participants tried to identify in which habitats in the Salaca River and on its banks various plants, birds, mammals, fish and invertebrates are found. They had to work out which plants grow in shallower and which in deeper parts of the river, which bird is hard to spot but easy to recognise by its song, and which mammal regularly spends time in rivers. Using their sense of touch, participants tried to identify natural materials hidden in boxes, and at the end they could test their attentiveness and memory by playing a themed memory game.

On 23 May, Staicele hosted the Vimba Festival, which celebrated its 30th anniversary this year. In addition to the educational games and activities mentioned above, visitors could, together with the Nature Conservation Agency’s project team, get to know the sights and natural features of the Salaca river basin, identify aquatic plants and aquatic invertebrates, and take part in the Staicele round of the photo orienteering game “Treasures of the Salaca valley”.