Box 9C Coniferous forest: Muddus and Höga Kusten (Sweden)

Höga Kusten forest, Sweden

Source: G Heiss


Muddus National Park (Site 135 on Map 9.3) in the north of Sweden, is typical of Lapland's landscape. It is characterised by a mosaic of coniferous forests (pine and Norway spruce), lakes and bogs. Due to the inaccessibility of its swampy grounds, human exploitation has played only a minor role in the life cycle of this forest ecosystem. The unique quality of its extensive virgin forests (about 30 000 ha) and its representative landscape character led to the establishment of a national park in 1942. This large park, covering 50 350 hectares, has also been designated as a Biogenetic Reserve and awarded with the European Diploma.

Unlike the Mediterranean region, Muddus shows that forest fires do not always have negative effects on ecosystems. Here, forest fires have an indispensable role for ensuring the balance of pine and spruce in the boreal zone. Thus, fire is considered to be a natural part of the forest's life cycle. It results in periodic new growth and provides improved feeding grounds for local animal populations, especially mammals. Old pine trees which have died provide the substrate for the growth of yellow wolf lichen (Letharia vulpina), the only poisonous lichen species in Europe.

Another, quite different, example of the boreal forests of Northern Europe is the Swedish coastal forest of Höga Kusten (Site 134 on Map 9.3). Such coastal forests are rare in Europe. The location and the favourable climatic conditions of Höga Kusten make it particularly interesting from a botanical and faunistic standpoint. Here, the lichen old man's beard (Usnea longissima), a virgin forest indicator growing on Norway spruce, is still present. This species has disappeared from about 95 per cent of 122 locations in Sweden where it was found before 1970 (Esseen and Ericson, 1982). For the survival of this species it is essential that forest stands are able to develop naturally in unaltered conditions. It has been observed that managed forests are less likely to provide these habitat functions than non-managed forests. A part of the area (3250 ha) was established as a national park in 1984 and is surrounded by several nature reserves.