Bitėnai

History

Bitėnai was a village of peasants and fishermen. In 1454, King Casimir IV Jagiellon incorporated the region to the Kingdom of Poland upon the request of the anti-Teutonic Prussian Confederation. After the subsequent Thirteen Years' War (1454–1466) the village was a part of Poland as a fief held by the Teutonic Knights, and thus was located within the Polish–Lithuanian union, later elevated to the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. From the 18th century, it was part of the Kingdom of Prussia, and from 1871 it was also part of Germany, within which it was administratively located in the province of East Prussia. The village was a frequent resting place for those traveling via the Neman River. It developed in two sections: the southern Šilėnai (along the Žiogis rivulet) and the larger more densely populated northern Užbičiai (along the Bitė rivulet). The village had a wind mill, an inn, a police station, a dairy. Its primary school is known from the 18th century. The village belonged to the manor of . The village gained prominence during the Lithuanian press ban when Martynas Jankus moved his printing press from Tilsit (now Sovetsk) to Bitėnai in 1892. The printing press operated until 1909 and published six short-lived Lithuanian-language periodicals and 104 books. Many of these publications were brought by the Lithuanian book smugglers to Lithuanian lands located in the Russian Empire since the Partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. After the Klaipėda Revolt in 1923, Bitėnai became a part of independent Lithuania. In 1926, the village had 72 homesteads and its population reached 391 in 1941. Due to its proximity to the Rambynas hill, Bitėnai developed as a kind of resort and boasted three restaurants. It was occupied by Germany in 1939–1945. It was depopulated…

Most-observed species

• Mallard

  Anas platyrhynchos Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  106
• Common Crane

  Grus grus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  105
• Common Wood-Pigeon

  Columba palumbus Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  105
• Common Buzzard

  Buteo buteo (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  103
• Yellowhammer

  Emberiza citrinella Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  100
• Hooded Crow

  Corvus cornix Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  97
• Common Raven

  Corvus corax Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  96
• Eurasian Skylark

  Alauda arvensis Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  92