Species Monitoring and Conservation

Metsähallitus, Parks & Wildlife Finland is responsible for species inventories and species monitoring in the conservation areas managed by it. I also takes care of hunting grounds and fishing waters. Metsähallitus Forestry Ltd., in turn, takes threatened species into consideration in its forestry operations according to its Environmental Guide for Forestry.

Metsähallitus is nationally responsible for monitoring and protecting selected species that occur mainly in conservation areas or on state-owned land and waters. These include Golden eagle (Aquila chrysaëtos), Peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus) and Gyrfalcon (Falco rusticolus) as well as the Arctic fox (Vulpes lagopus) and Saimaa ringed seal (Phoca hispida saimensis). Volunteers play an important role in this work.

In addition, Metsähallitus is nationally responsible for monitoring a number of other threatened species or species which are protected under the EU Habitats Directive or the Birds Directive and maintaining their favorable conservation status in areas managed by Metsähallitus.

Furthermore, species inventories are carried out prior to ecological management activities in conservation areas to guide practical measures, and afterwards to assess the success of management. Management is also targeted to certain species to improve their habitat or to increase their population size. These include, for example, vascular plants in seminatural grasslands and butterflies in sun-exposed habitats.

Metsähallitus, Parks & Wildlife Finland also maintains the national species information database LajiGIS which is used by the environmental authorities.

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