Most of the existing populations of the threatened species of macrophytes in the Baltic Sea can be found in the SEAmBOTH area. There are a lot of populations from before 1995 in the southern Finland, Sweden, and south of the Baltic Sea which have now vanished. Whether this is due to lack of recent knowledge … Continue reading Endangered species
Several species of mussel live in the Baltic Sea. They all have a flat body covered by two calcium carbonate shells, which are attached together by a hinge. Mussel’s gills have evolved into ctenidia, specialized organs which they use for feeding and breathing. They also have a leg, which they use for moving. Duck mussel … Continue reading Duck mussel Anodonta anatina
June 6th 2019 was the date when a fisherman north of Oulu, Finland, brought a strange fish to the Metsähallitus SEAmBOTH team. The fish was identified as a round goby, Neogobius melanostomus. It was the northernmost finding of this alien species in Finland, probably even in the world. The species has started to spread from … Continue reading Round goby
Stoneworts, or Charales in scientific terms, is an order of green algae that is commonly found in the northern Bothnian Bay. They may look like ordinary vascular plants with stems and branches but are in fact algae. They can be found in freshwater, such as lakes, ponds, and rivers, as well as in brackish waters … Continue reading Stoneworts of the northern Bothnian Bay
We all know that increased amounts of filamentous and blue green algae mean eutrophication. This much is clear. All kinds of algae grow much faster than vascular plants and because of that, algae can make use of the excess amounts of nutrients available during the growth season. Algae are tough competitors because they are such … Continue reading Algae and diatoms
Water lily Nymphae alba has a beautiful white and yellow flower. Photo by Suvi Saarnio, Metsähallitus. When you think of a flower, you most probably think of something big and colorful. Maybe a rose or a sunflower, or a tulip. You probably wouldn’t think of any aquatic flowers first, even though some of them are … Continue reading Pretty flowers
Water soldier, or water pineapple, is a weird relict species of aquatic plant in Finland and in Sweden. The English name is easy to understand from the appearance of the species. It looks like a pineapple, and its leaves are sharply serrated like soldiers’ swords. Photo by Manuel Deinhardt, Metsähallitus. It was left here in … Continue reading Water soldier, Stratiotes aloides
Some species of vascular plants and other macrophytes (the plants, water mosses and algae that we can see) are adapted to marine water. This means, that the lower salinity level will limit their distribution. They also have a maximum salinity level where the environmental stress from the salty water will get too high and they … Continue reading Fresh water species in the Bothnian Bay
Pygmy waterweed is true to its name: it’s tiny. It is a teeny weeny annual succulent semiaquatic or aquatic plant that only grows to about 1-5 cm tall. You can find this small and inconspicuous vascular plant from the water’s edge at ponds, lakes, rivers and also brackish water seas like the Bothnian Bay. Its … Continue reading Pygmy waterweed, Crassula aquatica
What does your own lawn or the park downtown most likely have in common with the Bothnian Bay? That there is Grass, lots and lots of grass. Strictly speaking only the family Poaceae can be called grasses with around 12.000 different species. However, other families such as Cyperaceae (sedges) and Juncaceae (rushes) have species that … Continue reading Phragmites australis
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