Central Baltic Sea
Predatory fish in focus for living seas
From Bråviken and 60 km south along the Baltic coast, the conditions for predatory fish will be strengthened through a number of measures. A number of Natura 2000 sites contain a large number of islands, surrounded by vegetated shallow bays, reefs and lagoons where fish species such as pike and perch spawn and have their nursery areas. There are also important plants such as eelgrass, hornwort and bladderwrack, as well as birds such as terns and shags.
These areas and species are important for the biodiversity and ecosystems of the Baltic Sea, but are threatened by eutrophication, trawling and frequent anchoring.
Archipelagic areas – important habitats
A number of areas along the coastline, with islands, skerries, lagoons, flats and varied water depths make these environments extremely important habitats for a diversity of species.
Vegetated seabeds play a key role in coastal biodiversity. Many fish species have their spawning and nursery areas here. Birds forage on the productive seabed and many of the coast’s threatened species have their habitats here. The bladderwrack belt is home to the richest plant and animal life in the Baltic Sea. The more or less isolated lagoons (flats, gloflats and glon), isolated from the surrounding coastal waters by land uplift, are a very valuable habitat for fish recruitment and bird life.
The bladderwrack belt is home to the richest plant and animal life in the Baltic Sea.
Lots of fish species
Sample fishing along the Östergötland coast has shown the presence of 35 fish species, such as pike, perch, zander, salmon, trout, cod and several flatfish species. Five species are currently on the red list: eel, cod, anglerfish, turbot and vendace.
Reed clearing, reedbeds and anchoring buoys
In this project, the aim is to conserve marine habitats for predatory fish such as pike and perch. Improved populations of these predatory fish will lead to an improved ecological status of the aquatic environment through so-called cascading effects.
The project will involve the clearing of 10 hectares of reeds, the construction of 25 artificial reefs and the installation of 18 anchoring buoys. The aim is to improve conditions for predatory fish, enhance biodiversity and protect the area’s marine habitats. Human impacts on the area’s aquatic environment, seabed and underwater vegetation will be minimized.
The areas summarized in brief:
BOKÖ
The Bokö Natura 2000 area comprises the islands of Bokö, Brånnholmen, Långholmen and some fifteen smaller islands and skerries in the narrowest part of the Östergötland archipelago.
Bokö has a high species richness and provides a habitat for pike, perch and zander, for example. Human impact on the area’s aquatic environment, seabeds and underwater vegetation must be minimized.
Vegetated seabeds play a key role in coastal biodiversity. Many fish species have their spawning and nursery grounds here. Birds forage on the productive seabed and several of the coast’s threatened species have their habitats here.
BRÅVIKEN
The Bråviken outer project area is located in the Bråviken estuary in northeastern Östergötland in the northern part of the Östergötland archipelago. Most of the area is open sea. Important species in Bråviken Outer include pike, zander, perch, white-tailed eagle, common tern, sandwich tern, osprey and others.
The water area is characterized by relatively deep waters with a maximum depth of 38 meters. Just under 10 percent of the water area is shallow areas down to a depth of three meters. However, shallow areas with more lush vegetation are found in several places.
SÖDRA LUNDA – BRÅVIKEN INRE
Södra Lunda is located in the outer part of the Arkösund archipelago. There are marine natural values here, with both shallow bays (lagoons) and mosaic-like island groups. Some of the smaller islands are surrounded by shallow areas, but the majority of the reserve’s water surfaces are deeper than six meters.
ÅSVIKELANDET-KVÄDÖ
Åsvikelandets and Kvädöfjärdens nature reserve is located in the southern Östergötland archipelago in a very unaffected coastal area. There are rocky coasts as well as moraine beaches, extensive shallow areas and shallow and narrow bays. Of particular value is Licknevarpefjärden with its protected location inside Kvädö. Here and in the adjacent shallow bays there is a valuable flora of cranial algae and eelgrass as well as an unusually rich fish fauna. Motorboat traffic and fishing have long been banned.
SANKT ANNAS AND GRYTS SKÄRGÅRD, SAMT MISSJÖ
Sankt Anna och Gryts skärgårdar is located within one of Sweden’s most beautiful archipelagos, Sankt Anna. The Natura 2000 area is a large area consisting of several sub-areas in the middle and outer archipelago that includes five nature reserves and most of the archipelago’s bird and seal protection areas.
The central archipelago is characterized by groups of small or medium-sized islands between rather large and open bays. The islands in the archipelagos are dominated by rice and lichen communities and sparse rocky pine forest. On the larger islands such as Missjö, where the soil cover is deeper, there is an element of oak and grove vegetation. The marine environment has a relatively large proportion of shallow and vegetated bottoms with depths of 0-6 meters.
SVENSKSUNDSVIKEN
Svensksundsvikens is one of the largest shallow bays on the Baltic coast. With its rich and diverse nature and its great importance as a resting and nesting place for wetland birds, it is of national interest for nature conservation. The area has also been declared a wetland of international importance. The size of the bay with large adjacent areas of managed seashore meadows harbors a very rich flora and has high values for bird life and organism groups associated with seashore meadows on the Baltic Sea.
Svensksundsviken has a high species diversity and is a habitat for pike, perch, zander, white-tailed eagle, tern, common tern, bittern, greenfinch and other species. The prioritized conservation values include that the aquatic environment should have a good status for birds that forage here. For Svensksundsviken, the aim is to try to restore a water status with lower levels of nitrogen and phosphorus salts compared with current values. The amount of underwater vegetation should increase to the levels that existed in the 1960s. A blue band between saltmarsh and reed beds should be present along most of the boundary between saltmarsh and reed beds
Survival of river pearl mussels depends on host fish
Barriers to migration
Removing migration barriers and opening up the river pearl mussel’s host fish, salmon and trout, will increase the species’ ability to reproduce. Barriers to migration come in many forms, from natural to man-made dams and power plants. In some cases, a good solution may be to build a wildlife passage to allow fish and other organisms to bypass the migration barrier.
Central Baltic Sea
Latest news from the project area
Here you can read news about the target species and the actions being taken in the project area.
