Designated as one of Slovenia's four Natura 2000 sites (a Europe-wide network of protected natural heritage locations), Jovsi and Dobrava are actually two separate ecological areas divided by the Dobova- Župelevec road and centred around the picturesque hilltop village of Kapele, some 6km north of Brežice. Jovsi is a grassy floodplain located between the Sotla river and the Kapelske Gorice hill, which was regularly covered with water in the years before the Sotla was controlled - in fact, its name is taken from the German 'Jauchsee'. Today its marshy waterlogged meadows are home to a stunning variety of plants and animals, most notably 80 different species of birds, including the endangered corncrake.

On the other side of the hill, Dobrava is a lowland oak and hornbeam forest intersected by countless small streams. Like Jovsi it is also home to a wide variety of flora and fauna, such the black stork, collard flycatcher, middle spotted woodpecker and even the rare Ural owl.

Together Jovsi and Dobrava cover nearly 3000 hectares, and are open to visitors year-round. Guided tours to both sites can be arranged though the visitor information centre opposite the church in Kapele. At the centre visitors can watch a short English language video about the sites, take part in some interactive exhibitions and of course pick up brochures and other literature. The bird-watching tower at the edge of Jovsi is a 1km walk downhill from the visitor centre.