Geoheritage in a Forest: Traces of Ice Sheets in Pałuki, Western Poland

In this paper, we present nine large glacial erratic boulders laying in situ in the forested areas of Pałuki in the north-eastern Wielkopolska (Western Poland). They are discussed against the background of the rich geodiversity of the area, which owes its main features to the last ice sheet (Weichselian, MIS2), the front of which, after a momentary oscillation on the line of the Ryszewo moraines, began to recede and retreated northwards. Our field work consisted of collecting information on the dimensions, petrographic type, and type of eratics as well as specific features of the rock morphology. Attention was paid to the records of sub/inglacial processes, as well as periglacial processes affecting the foreland of the melting ice sheet and contemporary morphogenetic processes. In the detailed description of the boulders, attention is drawn to their scientific, cognitive, educational, cultural, conservational, pro-environmental and recreational importance. The recipient/beneficiary of such information can be anyone who is sensitive to the beauty of inanimate nature, who feels like an inheritance of the geological past of their region, or who wants to broaden their horizons with knowledge from the glacial era. Recognized and disseminated heritage of inanimate objects in nature through the transfer of expert knowledge has a great potential to become an effective generator of sustainable development of peripheral tourist areas such as Pałuki. Geotourism, which can be successfully developed in forests, is a tool for increasing the quality of life of inhabitants. Nowadays, social expectations regarding the functions of a forest are evolving in favour of social, educational (ecological education), tourist, and recreational functions.