Baltic coastal meadow

This habitat comprises natural or semi-natural grasslands along the coasts of the Baltic Sea. The habitat resembles A2.5c, Atlantic salt marshes, but in the Baltics tidal differences are much smaller, in the northern parts insignificant and the Baltic sea has a pronounced salinity gradient. Because of this, the species composition and zonation belts are different and the geomorphology is more flat, without pronounced levees and depressions. In general a zonation is found of specific communities in the lower parts, the hydrolittoral (below mean water level) and others in the higher parts (geolittoral, above mean water level). But species composition also changes in longitudinal direction over the area due to climatological as well salinity gradient that ranges from about 20‰ near the Kattegat, through  8‰ in the Darß-region to 2-5‰ in the Bothnian Gulf and Finnish Gulf. Tidal differences are small, and overruled by irregular, seasonal fluctuations in flooding regime due to storms, wind direction, changes in air pressure and drifting ice. The habitat is found on clayey sediments, sometimes mixed with gravelly substrates. Besides, the land upheaval of the northern parts of the Baltic Sea, continuing after the recession of the last glaciers in the ice ages, causes the development of saline meadows on non-sedimentary soils. Overall, the habitat is best represented in large bays, where clayey sediments are available, like in the Bothnian Bay and in Western Estonia.

In relatively saline areas, the most flooded, hydrolittoral and lower geolittoral belts harbour communities of the Puccinellion maritimae, with amongst others Puccinellia maritima, Triglochin maritima , Spergularia maritima and Plantago maritima, and of the Spergulario-Puccinellion, with Puccinellia distans(ssp. distans and ssp. borealis) and Spergularia salina. Sometimes Salicornia europaea is present. The total vegetation cover often is low (< 50%). However in areas strongly influenced by freshwater, like in the Darß, large helophytes or Cyperaceae of the Scirpion maritimi dominate the lower belts, mainly Bolboschoenus maritimus, but also Schoenoplectus tabernaemontani, Eleocharis uniglumis , Carex paleacea or Carex halophila may dominated such areas. The lower belt is especially pronounced in the northern part of the Bothnian Gulf, where the land uplift creates bare substrate that becomes colonized by pioneer species.

The higher, geolittoral belt has in general a closed vegetation cover and is characterized by communities of the Armerion maritimae and Potentillion anserinae, containing the following species: Juncus gerardi, Festuca rubra, Agrostis stolonifera, Vicia cracca, Potentilla anserina, Carex nigra, Trifolium fragiferum, Lotus tenuis, and Calamagrostis stricta. In many cases the species composition is a mixture of ‘real’ salt marsh species (halophytes) and more freshwater indicating species. In places with freshwater influence Blysmus rufus may dominate. On the higher edge of the meadows, the habitat may form transitions to or mosaics with grassland communities of the Cynosurion cristati (habitat E2.1a).

The Bothnian Gulf is one of the few areas in Northern-Europe where after the Ice Ages new, endemic taxa have developed. Endemics of the saline meadows are Deschampsia cespitosa ssp. bottnica (= Deschampsia bottnica),  characteristic of gravelly shores within the salt meadows, and Euphrasia bottnica, which grows in the higher parts of the meadows. Also a high amount of boreal-arctic species  is found here, having (sometimes rare) relict populations from a period when there existed a connection between the Baltic and the White Sea. Examples of such species are mainly found in brackish conditions, like Puccinellia phryganodes and Primula nutans ssp. finmarchica, more characteristic of Arctic salt marshes (habitat A2.5a), and Carex glareosa, Carex mackenziei, Carex paleacea and Carex halophila (in both habitat A2.5a and A2.5b). Most of these species grow in low grasslands and depend on grazing for their sustainable survival. Rare species in the saline meadows of the Baltic States is Angelica palustris, while along the East-German and Polish Baltic coast, Middle Sweden, southern Finland and Estonia the rare Eleocharis parvula forms pioneer communities on muddy, brackish soils in sheltered lagoons.

Traditionally the saline meadows have been more-or-less intensively grazed or mowed for ages, but due to recent abandonment of this type of land-use, in several parts of the Baltics the habitat is threatened by succession towards reed beds. Unlike for the Atlantic salt-marshes, such reed beds are not considered part of the habitat itself, but are in the definition of C5.1.

The habitat forms an important breeding and resting sites for many water birds and migratory birds. It also contains a set of specialized insects, in many cases living on just one or a few halophytic plant species.

Indicators of good quality:

The following characteristics are considered as indicators of good quality:

• Regularly flooding with brackish water
• Low vegetation structure
• Absence of large stands of Phragmites australis
• Absence of shrubs
• Presence of rare or endemic species
• Presence of several zonation belts
• Reguarly erosion by sea ice

Synthesis of Red List assessment

Confidence in the assessment

Pressures and threats