The B altic Sea belongs to the Atlantic Ocean basin, is located in Northern Europe and has a surface area of 415 km2. Many rivers flow into it, so it has an average salinity, this is one of the largest seas in the world with such a feature. There are no big storms in the B altic, the maximum wave height rarely exceeds 4 meters, so it is considered calm in comparison with other seas. The water temperature is quite cold, no more than 17-19 degrees Celsius, but this still does not stop the locals from swimming in the summer.
9 B altic neighbors
The B altic Sea washes the shores of several countries: Russia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Germany, Denmark, Sweden and Finland. It has four bays: Finnish, Bothnian, Riga and Curonian. The latter is separated from the sea by a strip of land - the Curonian Spit, which is a national natural park and is protected by the state. Interestingly, this nature reserve is dividedbetween two states: Russia and Lithuania.
Inhabitants
The B altic Sea is rich in seafood. Their extraction is carried out in the Kaliningrad region and European countries. The water here is not as s alty as in other seas. Therefore, some scientists conditionally divide the inhabitants of the B altic Sea into freshwater and marine. The bays are mostly inhabited by freshwater fish. The sea is located at a distance from the coast. Found in the B altic:
Salaka. This is a small fish of the herring family, rarely when it grows more than 25 cm. It is the main commercial fish of the B altic Sea, about half of the total catch falls on it. Salaka is smoked, fried and preserved
- B altic sprat. A very common fish in Europe, one of the well-known names is "European sprat". The sprat is smaller than the herring, the adult grows no more than 15 cm. In cooking, this fish is universal, like the herring, but most often they make canned food from it.
- Cod. This is a marine fish of the cod family, the meat is rich in protein and minerals, it is a good source of B vitamins. Also, cod meat has a lot of niacin, which is useful for liver diseases. It grows up to 1 meter long, the largest individuals can reach a size of up to 2 meters, but this happens very rarely. Cod is loved in many countries of the world, there are a lot of recipes for cooking dishes from it, a special delicacy is cod liver canned in oil. Cod is one of the most delicious marine life in the B altic Sea.
Flounder. This is a marine bottom fish of a bizarre flat shape. Its most memorable feature is a flat body and eyes located on one side, so it is impossible to confuse a flounder with another fish. The scales of this fish are rough like sandpaper. On average, a flounder lives for 5 years and grows up to 40 cm in length. It has white, tasty, tender meat, although when cooked, it emits a specific smell that not everyone may like. To get rid of discomfort during cooking, you need to remove the skin from the fish. Flounder meat contains proteins and useful amino acids that are well absorbed by the body. Flounder is considered a dietary fish
Eel. This amazing inhabitant of the B altic Sea is included in the list for a reason. It is found in all reservoirs of the Kaliningrad region. You can catch an eel not only in sea water, but also in freshwater rivers. Outwardly, the eel looks like a snake, has a long body and swims, wriggling like snakes. In length, an adult grows up to 1.5 m, and weighs about 2 kg. Eel meat contains proteins, fats and carbohydrates, and is also a source of omega-3s. The most common form of cooking eel is smoking
Perch. Very bony and tenacious fish, can live up to 15 years. The meat is stored for a long time, it contains many vitamins and nutrients
Valuable fish
- Salmon. This is a fish from the salmon family, found in the B altic slightly s alted waters. Atlantic salmon, sometimes referred to as "B altic" salmon. This type of "noble" sea fish is popularly known as "salmon", it is quite large, an adult male can reach a length of more than 1.5 m. The taste of salmon meat is tender and oily, the color varies from light pink to red. The salmon fillet contains almost no bones, so it is popular among those who do not like fish for fear of swallowing a small bone. Many dishes are prepared from this fish, including the well-known red salmon caviar, which appears on our tables on special occasions.
- Smelt. Surprisingly, the well-known smelt belongs to the salmon family. It is generally accepted that this fish is not valuable, despite the fact that it is caught in the B altic Sea in large numbers. Smelt meat is rich in iron and fluorine, doctors recommend including it in your diet for the elderly.
- Vendace. This small fish is also from the salmon family, its peculiarity is that it lives exclusively in the waters of the B altic Sea. Vendace from noble fish, therefore, is considered a valuable raw material. She is loved in Europe and Scandinavian countries. In many regions of Russia, vendace is under protection and you can’t just catch it.
- Sig. Fish of the salmon family is considered a valuable commercial fish and has more than 40 species. Despite the fact that whitefish belongs to the salmon family, its meat is white and very fatty. Because of this feature, whitefish meat is not stored for a long time, so it is consumed or s alted immediately.after being caught.
Shellfish, crustaceans and jellyfish
In addition to the listed fish, molluscs, squids, small crustaceans and bottom fish live in the B altic waters. Very rare is the mitten crab, which appeared here relatively recently. Jellyfish are also found in the B altic Sea, the largest - cyanide - lives not far from the waters of Denmark. In the rest of the space lives a harmless Aurelia, an inhabitant of the B altic Sea, whose photo is not as intimidating as the one presented above.
Mammals
Only three types of seals live in the B altic Sea:
- Tyuvyak (grey seal).
- Nerpa (common seal).
- Porpoise.
Dangerous inhabitants
There are no dangerous inhabitants in the B altic Sea, of the sharks you can only meet the katrana - a small shark with spikes on its fins, it is not dangerous to humans. She does not swim to the Russian shores, she lives in the Danish straits, where the B altic Sea connects with the North Sea.
