Freshwater Species

Freshwater species inhabiting the Baltic Sea include species such as perch (Perca fluviatilis), pike (Esox lucius), pikeperch (Sander lucioperca), bream (Abramis brama), roach (Rutilus rutilus), burbot (Lota lota) and the only population of sea habiting vendace (Coregonus albula) in the world. These freshwater species naturally prefer the less saline areas and so they colonize mostly the coastal areas, especially in the northern Baltic where the salinity level is lower. Most of these species have commercial value and some of the coastal populations are suffering from overexploitation.

Pike (Esox lucius). Photo: Petra Kääriä/HELCOM.