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The region of Vaasa, as well as the whole Kvarken archipelago, is a wonderful place for nature tourism. After the Kvarken Archipelago received UNESCO's World Heritage status there has been plenty of effort expended in building up good services for tourists who come to the area.

Our region is also a great place for birdwatchers, especially during the birds' migration in spring and autumn, and also during the nesting season. There are several places around here where migratory birds rest and feed during their migration.

Most of the bird species which can be seen here are very common and they come here every year. Every now and then also some unusual individuals fly here and take a closer look at our beautiful landscape. For example, in July 2006 a Trumpeter Finch (Bucanetes githagineus) visited Finland for the first time, and during his first visit decided to rest for a while on Norrskär Island. It was a real fiesta for hundreds of birdwatchers who came to the little Norrskär Island to see this rarity.

The Tundra Swans on a short brake in Söderfjärden. (Photo: Jouni Kannonlahti)

You don't have to be a dedicated birdwatcher if you want to see a magnificent nature-show of birds. For example, in the springtime, as soon as there is some open water in Sundom Bay, you will find thousands of swans resting and feeding in the bay on their way to the north. Near to Sundom Bay there are the large fields of Söderfjärden. In the evenings during the late summer you can meet hundreds of cranes who come there to fill their stomachs, before flying off to sleep in the surrounding archipelago. Söderfjärden is a 560 million year-old impact crater which was drained and has now been cultivated. Söderfjärden is definitely worth visiting. In the middle of the fields there is the unique visitor centre Meteoria, which includes an exhibition, an astronomical observatory, a bird watching tower and an energy cellar.

"There are plenty of great places to see and hear the birds in this area", says Pekka Peura, a birdwatcher and the Development Manager at the Levón Institute. "The unfortunate thing is that there is not very much public information about these places and there are few services available", he continues. However Levón Institute has now, together with Merenkurkun lintutieteellinen yhdistys (an ornithological association in Kvarken), started a project which aims to list the good bird watching places and make recommendations on how to improve their services, e.g. build paths, towers, guided routes, etc. The project will also produce a guide of good bird watching places in this area by using UP Code, an advanced mobile system innovated in Vaasa. "We are a little bit ahead our time, which is a good thing. I'm sure that nature tourism in this area will benefit a lot from this project", says Jouni Kannonlahti, who works as the Project Manager at the Levón Institute and also is the Chairman of the ornithological association.

As birdwatchers, Pekka Peura and Jouni Kannonlahti know many good bird watching places in our region.

More information:
Botnia Tourist
tel. +358 (0)6 325 11 25
office@botniatourist.com
www.pohjanmaanmatkailu.fi

Text: Johanna Haveri
Photos: Johanna Haveri and Jouni Kannonlahti