Am Tierkoven, Nature reserve in Hemer, Germany

Am Tierkoven is a 6.3-hectare nature reserve on the eastern edge of Deilinghofen, in the Hemer municipality. It covers a former coppice that was converted to spruce forest, with a juniper heath and remains of early mining such as pits and spoil heaps.

Am Tierkoven was designated a nature reserve by the Arnsberg district government in 1988, with a further designation in 2008. The protected area covers 6.3 hectares east of Deilinghofen on the edge of the village. Its woodland was formerly coppice that was later converted to spruce, and the designation set out to turn the spruce back into broadleaf forest.

The name Tierkoven is a local field name; the sources do not explain its meaning. What visitors can still see are traces of former mining: small pits (Pingen) and spoil heaps (Halden) lie within the reserve, reminders of earlier mining activity east of Deilinghofen.

The reserve can be explored using marked trails and paths that protect sensitive habitats while allowing nature observation. Visitors should stay on designated routes and observe the surroundings quietly.

Pingen and spoil heaps inside the reserve are traces of earlier mining activity, a detail easy to miss among the trees. The site was also once a coppice wood before being converted to spruce, and the spruce was to be turned back into broadleaf forest after protection.