Wednesday, 07 January 2009

Perämeri National Park Print E-mail
By Antje Neumann   
Tuesday, 18 October 2005

It is a pleasant sunny day at the beginning of August when the boat of the Forest
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Photo by Antje Neumann
and Park service Metsähallitus leaves the harbour at Hietasaari and heads north. The nature warden Matti Siipola is on his way to the Perämeri National Park to check if everything is ok up there and to carry out the yearly counting of the seals in the grey seal protection area off the island of Möyly close to the Swedish border.


The Perämeri National Park is situated in the northern archipelago of the Bothnian Bay near the towns of Kemi and Tornio. It consists of sea areas and islands which are only reachable by boat in summer or over the ice in wintertime. 

The 157sq metres national park was established to protect the special nature and old cultural landscapes of the archipelago. The islands result from post-glacial land uplift which is still continuing, lifting existing islands further up and creating new islands. That creates a variety of different vegetation zones and different habitats for animals and plants. There are also other features like the low salinity of the Bothnian Bay due to the large rivers flowing into the sea and the long period of ice cover which make the area’s nature special.

The first stop is still south of the national park at the island of Röyttä (Ii).  During the period 1882-1968 the small island had an important harbour for shipping lumber and sawn goods abroad, mostly to Germany and England but also to Denmark, The Netherlands and Estonia. Interestingly, the harbour was not built on the main land but on this little island. The reasons for this were more sheltered conditions and deeper water.  Nowadays the harbour is not in use for trading purposes anymore but for recreational purposes. The former dormitory of the workers has been renovated and can be rented for celebrations, conferences and so on.

After checking the buildings, the journey continues towards the grey seal protection area Möyly. It was established in 2001 and is within the boundaries of the national park. Entering the area without a special permit is forbidden throughout the year. Slowly the ship glides towards the small reef.
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Photo by Antje Neumann
No seals are to be seen lying on the sand sunbathing but there are lots of dark heads in the water, looking at us. “They like folk music”, explains Matti Siipola and turns the music on. Indeed, the heads come a bit closer, diving up and down, trying to get a closer glimpse of the strange intruder in their territory. 

Seal hunting has a long tradition in the Northern countries. Seals were used not only as a food gain but also as a source for many different materials in daily use. Later, in the 19th century, the hunting pressure increased due to the use of more efficient weapons.

The seal population decreased rapidly in the first half of the 19th century, mostly due to over hunting and the effect of environmental poisons on the seals’ health and reproduction capacity. After the introduction of protection measures, the number of seals has increased again over the last decade. There is a steady conflict of interests between the fishing industry, which sees seals as a hazard to their source of livelihood, and nature conservationists.

After visiting the seal protection area, the journey continues to the island of Selkä-Sarvi.
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Photo by Antje Neumann
This island belongs to the national park but visiting the area is allowed.  There is a small harbour, huts for rent as well as ones free-to-use, a sauna, fireplace and a nature path. Old fishing huts recall the history of the island as a base for fishermen from the 15th century on. The old cultural landscape of the island is preserved partly by the use of grazing sheep to keeping the landscape open.

 

Further information:

Iin Röyttä:
Hiring of a hut (50 Euros per day): Nature hut in Kemi, This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or (016) 255 090.
Remarks: The hut is situated on an island and you have to bring drinking and cooking water with you.
Map of the Perämeri national park: http://www.luontoon.fi/




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