Světlík, Nature reserve in Horní Podluží, Czech Republic.
Světlík is a nature reserve in Horní Podluží featuring wetlands, meadows, and water areas that provide habitat for water birds and other wildlife. The landscape consists of open grasslands interspersed with water bodies and reed beds typical of lowland wetland ecosystems.
The site received official protected status in 1995 as part of efforts to conserve important wetlands in Northern Bohemia. This designation reflected growing recognition of the ecological importance of lowland marshes in the region.
The pond's name, Světlík, means "little bright one" in Czech, and the fishpond has appeared on maps since Müller's 1720 map of Bohemia. The five-bladed Dutch-type windmill on the bank, built in 1843 and restored between 2002 and 2009, is a real mill with no added functions.
The pond is owned by the municipality of Horní Podluží and used for sport fishing; angling is allowed only in the section marked by signs, and from 16 March to 30 June fishing is banned in the reed-marked section because birds nest there. Continuous reed beds and waterlogged banks limit recreational use, and the dam is 275 m long with a 4.5 m wide crown.
A five-bladed Dutch-type windmill built in 1843 stands on the pond bank and ground grain until 1945; it was restored between 2002 and 2009 and still works as a real mill with no added functions. Peat was mined in the northern part of the reserve from 1972 to 1976, and the abandoned pits and drainage channels remain visible.
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