What do Andfjorden, Tysfjorden and Rystraumen have in common? They typify three of Norway’s diverse costal marine habitats, while also containing vulnerable species that are important for the rest of the marine ecosystem. All three are now being mapped to plan the best protection.
By: Kathy Dunlop, Mona Fuhrmann and Tina Kutti // Institute of Marine Research
Andfjorden, Tysfjorden, and Rystraumen are home to diverse marine life and are prioritised alongside many other regions as part of the Norway’s coastal marine protected area network plan. The marine protection plan written back in 2004 selected 49 areas, 36 of which were given top priority to be mapped further and established. These areas were selected because they give a good representation of Norway’s different coastal marine habitats. Several of these priority marine protected areas (MPAs) are in northern Norway, including Tromsø’s local Rystraumen, which represents a strong tidal current coastal habitat, Tysfjorden as a fjordal region, and a transect leading from one of Europe’s largest underwater canyons “Bleiksdjupet” into Andfjorden. Areas that made the short list were recognised for their representation of these habitats but also for containing species and habitats considered to be vulnerable and valuable because they are rare, sensitive to human activities and have a significant function for the rest of the marine ecosystem.
Mapping of special species and habitats is the basis for decisions on the location and extent of protection measures. The selection of the original priority list was based on mapping information from reports, studies, and observations several decades old. Further systematic and detailed mapping is required to ensure that an effective marine protection plan for each area is in place.
Since 2011, the seafloor in some of these selected areas has been mapped by the Institute of Marine Research in collaboration with the Geological Survey of Norway and the Norwegian Mapping Authority. Mapping has revealed previously unknown reefs of Lophelia coral (previously known as Desmophyllum pertusum) close to our shores, bamboo coral forests on the deep fjord bottom, soft coral gardens in places with strong currents, deep-sea gorgonian corals, sponge beds and sea pen fields.
Andfjorden is important for shrimp fishing and nursery grounds for cod, halibut, redfish, and lumpsuckers. Mapping by the Mareano project, in combination with fishers’ observations, revealed a spectacular deep seafloor containing forests of gorgonian and bamboo corals, gardens of sponges and sea pens, and reefs. The Steinavær reef, located between Andøya and Senja, was first discovered and mapped by dredging in the 1930s. It covers four square kilometres and up until 1944 it was Norway’s largest known coral reef. Since then, other reefs have been discovered elsewhere in Norway but Steinavær remains one of Norway’s most spectacular. Mapping by the Institute of Marine Research in 2022 resulted in the definition of accurate borders of the reef and the creation of a plan, currently under hearing, to fully protect the reef from bottom-touching fishing gear.
Ryastraumen
Tromsø’s local MPA, Rystraumen, lies south of Kvaløya around the popular fishing spot of Hella. It originally made it onto the list of priority protected areas based on studies from UiT The Arctic University of Norway, which demonstrated the presence of rare, vulnerable, and valuable benthic species in the strong tidal current.
The Institute of Marine Research mapped the area in greater detail in 2022, using a towed camera. Soft corals (Duva florida and Alcyonium digitatum) and sponges (Geodia baretti) live in the deep strait aptly named Storstraumen (The Big Current), while shallower waters support kelp forests and marl beds that provide valuable habitats to other species, including saithe and wolffish that attract fishers to Hella. The distribution and extent of these habitats outside what could be mapped with the towed camera was estimated using a predictive distribution model to enable development of the MPA plan.
Tysfjorden
With its deep basins (> 700 m) and steep walls, Tysfjorden is known for hosting a variety of coral habitats and its own northernmost lobster population. Tysfjorden is under growing pressure from aquaculture and increasing traffic related to the mining industry near the port of Drag. Recent mapping has provided local authorities with more information on where deep-sea species are found. On the northern border of the planned MPA, at depths around 700 m, a dense forest of bamboo corals together with metre-high sea pens (Funiculina quadrangularis) was found. The red-listed bamboo coral Isidella lofotensis only occurs in Norway and has especially high natural and cultural relevance to management. The steep walls of the fjord are often colonised by Lophelia and hard-bottom gorgonians, which feed by filtering particles from the water, aided by the strong current.
One of the largest known coral reef complexes in Nordland was recently mapped in the inner part of Vestfjorden near the entrances of Ofotfjorden and Tysfjorden, but it does not lie within any of the currently planned protected areas. This reef complex provides habitat for both fish and other benthic communities.
Results from this mapping work will provide distribution models of some of the major habitats, which will be important when environmental managers decide on further protection measures.
Practical implications
Once an area has gained protection, what does that mean for human activities? Internationally, since the creation of the first marine protected areas around 40–45 years ago, enough time has passed to see some real positive effects of increased protection. These include improved fish recruitment and stronger lobster populations. However, most successes have largely been attributed to “no-take” zones where no fishing or shellfish gathering is allowed. Norway currently only protects an area of 1.5 square kilometres as a “no-take” zone to protect spawning cod.
Other areas, such as Andfjorden, Tysfjorden, and Rystraumen, have only received partial protection such as restrictions of the establishment of fish farms, and limits on bottom trawling. The Global Biodiversity Framework has committed to a biodiversity strategy to protect 30% of all marine and terrestrial ecosystems and habitats by 2030, a commitment that Norway supports. However, merely protecting 30% of the total land and sea area should not be the only or most important focus: the level of protection is also crucial.