Hauptprielsystem Meldorfer Bucht

Arial photo of the Hauptprielsystem Meldorfer Bucht
Photo: 98fahrenheit

The North Sea in the impact area of the river Elbe

The sampling site ‘Hauptprielsystem Meldorfer Bucht’ (main tidal creek system in the Meldorf Bay) is located west of Dithmarschen in the southern Schleswig-Holstein Wadden Sea. The sampling site comprises the sub-littoral areas of the flow channel Piep, which drains the Meldorf Bay, to the north of island Trischen. The sampling site, i.e. the area of all deep channels together, covers approximately 30 km2 and has an east-west extension of about 15 km and a north-south extension of about 8 km.

The Meldorf Bay lies immediately north of the Elbe estuary and, due to the prevailing wind and the main flow direction of the North Sea, in the direct drainage area of the Elbe.

Under the ESB programme, the samplings site ‘Hauptprielsystem Meldorfer Bucht’ is used for sampling eelpout.

Specimen

  • As the only viviparous fish in German nearshore waters, it is a bioindicator in nearshore coastal marine ecosystems.

Analytes

Sampling period

1994 - 2023