Nature Balance 2008: The quality of habitats in the Wadden Sea has improved
The quality of habitats in the Wadden Sea has improved slightly during the past 20 years. But additional improvement is required to sustainably conserve these habitats.
Rottemeroog (photo: Karel Tomei / Foto Natura).
In addition, the current mollusc fishery must become more ecologically sustainable or it must be reduced in size. By locally restoring the natural transitions between salt water and fresh water, plants and animals that disappeared years ago can return. In recent years, nature policy has had a beneficial effect. This is shown, among other ways, by the growing seal population in the
Wadden
Sea. In addition, changes are taking place that are difficult to understand. In recent years, populations of worm-eating birds have increased, but mollusc-eating birds have not. The meaning of this disparity is unclear, but it does indicate that the food supply, and therefore the ecosystem itself, is subject to significant changes.
The current quality of habitats in the North Sea and the Wadden Sea is approximately half that of habitats still untainted by human influence (source: Wortelboer, 2008).
