Background The project actions will focus on the Nemunas Delta Regional Park (Natura 2000 site), which is situated in the Šilutė district, in western Lithuania. The Aukštumala raised bog is found in the interstream area, between the rivers Nemunas and Minija. The Nemunas delta, including the Aukštumala raised bog, is also a Ramsar (Convention on Wetlands of International Importance) site. At the beginning of the Twentieth Century, the whole wetland was trenched by shallow drainage ditches for peat excavation purposes. The dense network of ditches in the eastern part, and the less intensive network in other parts of the reserve, are still active today, and. because of the ongoing drainage, the typical raised bog habitats are being displaced by forests of birch (Betula pubescens) and Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris). At present, around half of the raised bog is excavated for peat. The excavated areas border and are damaging to the still untouched high moor, due to the drainage of living raised bog. Objectives The project´s main objective is to restore and maintain the favourable conservation status of the "7110 Active Raised bog" habitat within the Aukštumalės Telmological Reserve. This will be done by damming old drainage ditches within the high moor, thus raising the water table within the project area and increasing sphagnum growth. Large-scale removal of invading bushes and trees from overgrown high moor areas will complement the damming action. The foreseen conservation actions will also support other Annex II habitat types ("3160 natural dystrophic lakes") and species (e.g. black grouse (Tetrao tetrix) and wood sandpiper (Tringa glareola). Secondary project objectives are: To establish an international board of experts dedicated to the protection of Aukštumala; To train local nature guides; To disseminate the project´s experiences and raise awareness about the importance of high moor protection in Lithuania; To restore and develop an existing educational path and observation tower. Expected results: Approximately 70 km of small ditches that drain the high moor will be blocked; Approximately 10 km of main ditches that drain the high moor will be blocked; Approximately 100 ha of overgrown high moor will be cleared; An international high moor expert group will be established, two workshops will be held, two study tours will be carried out, and other meetings will be held; Twenty nature guides will be trained on wetland conservation and eight excursions will organised; A film about Aukštumala will be produced, an educational trail will be renovated and improved, the oldest wetland scientific monograph will be printed in Lithuanian, and other promotional and exhibition materials will be produced, including a project website; Two scientific publications about the project will be written.