As at 31 December 2024, a total of 23,4% of Estonia’s area, including both land and waters, is under protection The area of protected areas in Estonia increased significantly in 2004, when the Natura 2000 network was established. As a result, the share of protected areas increased from 11% to 17% of land and then continued to increase gradually. The area of protected areas in the territorial sea...

The main databases and distribution atlases on Estonian biodiversity of the last twenty years are available from the eElurikkus portal Species distribution atlases The species distribution atlas (formerly as a book, nowadays also online) reflects the distribution of species in Estonia over a period of time and has been compiled by species groups (for example, plants, mammals, birds). Published...

Nature conservation indicators show how successful nature conservation activities have been and the good/bad status of the nature. Just as a thermometer shows us whether we have a fever or if the temperature stays within the norm, environmental indicators show the state of our communities, species, and the environment in general. Nature conservation indicators, however, show how successful nature...

The purpose of monitoring is to provide information on changes in the state of the environment in Estonia. The objective of wildlife monitoring is to determine: the changes in species abundance and distribution and in communities; the impact of land use on biodiversity (such as the impact of the increasingly intense agricultural activity on insects or birds). The purpose of monitoring species and...

The data collected in the framework of national environmental monitoring is reliable and of high quality Estonia has three levels of environmental monitoring: state, local government, and voluntary monitoring. The performance of environmental monitoring is regulated by the Environmental Monitoring Act. The state environmental monitoring is divided into 12 sub-programmes, which provide a...

The diversity and species richness of a landscape is not just a value in itself, but it also provides direct economic benefit for farmers. At first, it might seem that leaving a buffer strip between crop fields doesn’t have a direct effect on the crops. However, research has shown that the wildlife and vegetation of these buffer strips can migrate to the fields. According to an outdated belief...

One of the key reasons behind global biodiversity loss is change in land use, which includes agricultural practices that cause extensive damage to the environment. Even though we don’t want to admit this to ourselves, Estonia’s landscapes, soil and water environment and biodiversity have been seriously affected by agricultural techniques that prioritise high yields. Valuable yet vulnerable islands...

On 14 August 1910, the Riga Society of Naturalists rented the Vaika Islands in West Saaremaa where they prohibited all disturbance to seafowl. This was made possible by Artur Toom, an ornithologist and the keeper of the Vilsandi lighthouse. The first nature reserve in Estonia was established. In December 1935, the acting state elder Konstantin Päts signed the Nature Conservation Act and the State...

A growing concern about the quality of landscapes and insufficient measures for landscape management led the European Conference of Local and Regional Authorities to approve the proposal to develop a landscape convention draft in 1994. After years of preparation, the European Landscape Convention was adopted in Florence on 20 October 2000. The convention entered into force four years later, when...

The Kihnu native sheep is a local landrace breed. Initially, the Kihnu native was a pan-Estonian breed that could be found everywhere in the country. However, by the beginning of the 21st century, the breed had only survived on Kihnu Island Descendent of the mouflon sheep, The Kihnu native sheep belongs to the group of Northern European short-tailed sheep who have been located in Northern Europe...