Home / Blog / Bothnian Bay at its very best

May 23, 2012

Bothnian Bay at its very best

BY: Christina Abel

Topics: 

© OCEANA / Carlos Suárez

 

Christina Abel - Marine scientistThese days we are spending in the very north of the Bothnian Bay. We are lucky with the weather, as the sun is shining and the sea is incredible clam.

After breakfast the divers went diving directly from Hanse Explorer. They documented sand goby (Pomatoschistus minutus), and eelpout (Zoarces viviparus) on a sandy bottom, while two noisy terns were circuling around the boat. It is limited how many marine species that can live here, due to the low salinity: less than 10 marine fish species exist in the bay.

The rest of the day we did five ROVs in different depths, all in Finnish waters, with the last operation starting at 9 pm. Four of the ROVs showed a muddy seafloor with many individuals of the endemic isopod Saduria entomon. A mud sample from 50 meters depth revealed the small amphipod Monoporeia affinis. As I write this there is a beautiful sunset, with the extraordinary light there exist at 65 degrees north.