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Located in theScandinavian Peninsula,Sweden is a mountainous country dominated bylakes andforests. Itshabitats include mountainheath,montane forests,tundra,taiga,beech forests,rivers, lakes,bogs,brackish andmarine coastal ecosystems, and cultivated land. The climate of Sweden is mild for a country at this latitude, largely owing to the significant maritime influence.
Sweden is an elongated country east ofNorway and west of theBaltic Sea and theGulf of Bothnia. It extends from a latitude of55°N (similar to Newcastle orMoscow) to more than70°N, which is north of theArctic Circle. To the southwest lie theSkagerrak and theKattegat seas. To the northeast is the land border with Finland, marked by theTorne River. The coastline along the Baltic Sea is indented with many small islands and two larger ones,Gotland andÖland. Lakes are numerous, ranging in size from small ponds toVänern, the third largest lake in Europe.[1]
Most of northern and central Sweden, roughly north of the large riverDalälven, constitutes theNorrland terrain which consists of large, barren areas of hilly and mountainous land gradually rising from the Gulf of Bothnia to theScandinavian Mountains (or Scandes) in the west. These mountains, which form the border with Norway in the north, are mostly around 1000 meters in height, butKebnekaise reaches 2097 meters,[2] making it the tallest mountain in Sweden and northern Scandinavia.
The geology of the Scandes is quite diverse; often reflected in differences in the flora. South of Dalälven is a low-lying area surrounding the large lakesMälaren andHjälmaren. The soils in this area are clayey and fertile, having originated from marine deposits during the latest glaciation. Due to the rich soils, this area became one of the main agricultural regions in Sweden.
To the south, there are some minor hilly and barren areas, such asTiveden. East and west of LakeVättern are intensively cultivated plains onsedimentary rock. To the south of this region, the land rises again to theSouth Swedish highlands, a terrain of mostly barren hills reaching 377 meters. The southernmost province of Scania differs from the rest of Sweden in consisting almost entirely of mostly flat, arable land, and also in its complex geology, which includesMesozoic rocks andabrasion coasts. The rest of Sweden mostly consists ofgneiss andgranite, sometimes forming archipelagos (Swedishskärgård) of fairly small, bare, rounded rocks in the northern part of the west coast and around Stockholm. The Baltic islands Öland and Gotland consist almost entirely ofOrdovician andSilurian limestone, respectively.[3]
Despite its northerly latitude, most parts of Sweden have atemperate climate with few temperature extremes.[4] Climatically, the country can be divided into three regions; the northernmost part has asubarctic climate, the central part ahumid continental climate and the southernmost part anoceanic climate. The country is much warmer and drier than other places at a similar latitude, mainly because of the combination of theGulf Stream[5] and the general westerly direction of the wind. The northern half of the country gets less rainfall than Norway because of therain shadow effect caused by the Scandinavian Mountains.[6]
There are an estimated 55,000species of animals and plants in terrestrial habitats inSweden, this relatively low number is attributed to the cold climate;[7] These include 73 species ofmammal, about 240 breeding bird species (and another 60 or so non-breeding species which can be seen rarely or annually), 6 species ofreptile, 12 species ofamphibian, 56 species offreshwater fish, around 2000 species ofvascular plants, close to 1000 species ofbryophyte, and over 2000lichens.[8]
Sweden had a 2019Forest Landscape Integrity Index mean score of 5.35/10, ranking it 103rd globally out of 172 countries.[9]
Beech (Fagus sylvatica) is the dominant tree species in the region ofSkåne and along a narrow strip of the west coast.[10] This is called thenemoral zone. Forest herbs in this zone typically vegetate and flower in spring, as the crown of beech is very dense, and little light reaches the ground once the leaves appear. Examples areAnemone spp. andCorydalis spp.
Oak (Quercus robur andQuercus petraea) forests occur on poor soils in southernmost Sweden. Forests of alder (Alnus glutinosa), ash (Fraxinus excelsior), and elm (Ulmus glabra) grow in nutrient-rich, often wet soil, but most of these areas have long since been drained and converted to arable fields.
Most of Sweden below the mountains is covered byconifer forests and forms part of thecircumboreal zone. South of the riverDalälven, there are scattered deciduous trees like oak (Quercus robur), and this zone is referred to as boreo-nemoral. North of Dalälven, in the proper boreal (taiga) zone, deciduous trees are rarer, but birches (Betula pubescens andBetula pendula) and aspen (Populus tremula) may be abundant in earlysuccessional stages, such as after a fire or in recently clear-cut areas. There are a total of four native conifers in Sweden, and of these only Norway spruce (Picea abies) and Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) form forests, in pure or mixed stands. Spruce grows in wetter soils and pine drier soils, but in bogs, there are often numerous stunted pines. The undergrowth in a spruce forest is commonly almost pure stands of bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus). In wetter areas, ferns (e.g.,Athyrium filix-femina andDryopteris spp.) are abundant, and in richer soils, herbs (e.g.,Paris quadrifolia,Actaea spicata) and broad-leaved grasses (e.g.,Milium effusum) are more common. In pine forests, lingonberries (Vaccinium vitis-idaea), heather (Calluna vulgaris) and/orCladonia lichens are most common. Fires occur at irregular intervals and usually kill all spruce and most pines. Fireweed (Epilobium angustifolium), raspberry (Rubus idaeus), andGeranium bohemicum are among the first plants to germinate in the ashes.
In the mountains, the conifers are replaced by birch (Betula pubescens ssp.tortuosa), which forms the tree line in most areas. The undergrowth in these forests is quite variable. Under wet and nutrient-rich conditions, luxuriant vegetation may develop, consisting of tall herbs such asAconitum septentrionale,Angelica archangelica, andCicerbita alpina. Above the birch forest, starting at 300–1000 meters, depending on latitude, there are usuallywillow-thickets, and above these can be found alpine heath or meadows, the former dominated by dwarf shrubs of the familyEricaceae, the latter by sedges,rushes and various herbs such asSaxifraga spp.,Dryas octopetala andDraba spp.
Ranunculus glacialis reaches the highest altitude of all vascular plants in Sweden, often growing near the ever-shrinking glaciers.
Wetlands cover large areas in Sweden. In the south,raised bogs are a common variety, of which a striking example isStore Mosse. These bogs largely consist of living and deadSphagnum spp., with scattered dwarf shrubs and sedges such asEriophorum vaginatum. In the wet southwest,Narthecium ossifragum andErica tetralix occur in the bogs, while in the north and the east, the dwarf birchBetula nana andLedum palustre, an evergreen shrub, are common. Richfens, with manysedges and orchids, are rather rare, except onGotland andÖland, two large limestone islands in the Baltic, whereCladium-dominated fens are common. In the north of Sweden, there are many largemire complexes with both fen- and bog-like parts. The largest is found inSjaunja, a nature reserve in Lapland.
Sweden has as many as 90,000 lakes larger than onehectare. Most of these are either nutrient-poor with clear water and few plants (e.g.Lobelia dortmanna andIsoëtes spp.), like LakeVattern, or smallponds with brown water surrounded by floating mats of bog vegetation (e.g. sedges andMenyanthes trifoliata). Nutrient-rich lakes are found mostly in the south and typically have densereed stands, other emergent plants (e.g.Iris pseudacorus andSparganium erectum), free-floating plants such asHydrocharis morsus-ranae andStratiotes aloides, and submerged vegetation with spp. ofPotamogeton,Ranunculus, and others. The best-known lakes in this category are undoubtedlyTåkern andHornborgasjön.
The coast of Sweden is long and conditions are quite different at the endpoints. Near the Norwegian border, conditions are typical of the North Atlantic, turning to subarctic near the Finnish border wheresalinity is down to 0.1–0.2%. A common seashore species there is the endemic, tussock-forming grassDeschampsia bottnica, which survives the destructive force of up to 2 meters thick sea ice. Common submerged vascular plants in this area, theGulf of Bothnia, are, among othersMyriophyllum sibiricum,Callitriche hermaphroditica andStuckenia pectinata. On the west coast, one may instead findZostera marina in similar localities. Diversity, abundance and size of red (Rhodophyta) and brown (Phaeophyta) algae decrease drastically with salinity, whileCharophyceae (of the green algae, theChlorophyta) thrive in thebrackish waters of the Baltic.
According to theIUCN Red List, terrestrial mammals occurring in Sweden include theEuropean hedgehog, theEuropean mole (only in the south), six species ofshrews, and eighteen species ofbats. Themountain hare, theEurasian beaver, thered squirrel, as well as about fourteen species of smallerrodents occur in Sweden as well. Of the ungulates,wild boar,red deer,moose, androe deer are found in the country, as well as semi-domesticatedreindeer. Terrestrial carnivores include thebrown bear, theEurasian wolf, and thered fox. In the mountains, the rareArctic fox, as well as the mostly northernEurasian lynx are found. Native mustelids are theEuropean badger, theEurasian otter, thestoat, theleast weasel, theEuropean polecat, theEuropean pine marten, thebeech marten (a recent addition) and, in the north, thewolverine. The coast is inhabited by threeseal species:harbor seal in the south and west,ringed seal in the Gulf of Bothnia, andgrey seal throughout. Theporpoise is the only cetacean that breeds in Swedish waters.
TheEuropean rabbit, theEuropean hare, and thefallow deer were deliberatelyintroduced, while theraccoon dog,mink,muskrat,brown rat, andhouse mouse were unintended introductions. All these introductions, perhaps except the fallow deer, have been successful, resulting in viable populations. A small and dwindling herd ofmuskoxen still exists in the southern part of the mountains. They stem from animals brought to Norway from Greenland.
Sweden's Red List of critically endangered mammals includesBechstein's bat, thecommon pipistrelle and theArctic fox, while endangered mammals include thebarbastelle, theserotine bat, thepond bat, thelesser noctule, and thewolf. Listed as vulnerable are theEurasian otter, thewolverine, theharbor seal, theharbour porpoise, and theNatterer's bat.[11]
According toAvibase: Bird Checklists of the World, 535 species of bird have been recorded in Sweden, but less than half of these breed regularly.[12] Many of them aremigratory, making their way between Arctic breeding grounds and overwintering quarters in Europe and Africa. Birds that breed and overwinter in Sweden includetits,corvids,Galliformes,owls and severalbirds of prey. Canada geese (Branta canadensis) and pheasants (Phasianus colchicus) have been deliberately introduced.[13]
The onlyendemic fish in Sweden is the critically endangered freshwaterCoregonus trybomi, still surviving in only a single lake.[14]Amphibians found in Sweden include eleven species of frogs and toads and two species of newt, whilereptiles include four species ofsnake and three species oflizard. They are all protected under the law.[15]
Sweden has an estimated 108 species ofbutterflies, 60 species ofdragonflies, and 40 species ofwood-boringbeetles.
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Some of the significant challenges Swedish wildlife faces include:
Additionally,climate change is likely to affect the country's biodiversity, with the treeline moving further north and to higher altitudes, and forests replacing tundra.[16] The melting of ice will increase runoff, affecting wetlands. With a rise in sea level, the Baltic Sea will receive a greater inflow of saline water.[16]