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35-462: The name was first recorded in a 12th-century document. At the time, the islands differed considerably from the mainland regarding both their social constitution and political status. Today parts of the former Uthlande are submerged in the Wadden Sea — especially large parts of the island Strand — or have themselves become a part of the mainland by the construction of dikes or land reclamation . On

70-763: A Joint Declaration on the Protection of the Wadden Sea was agreed upon to co-ordinate activities and measures for the protection of the Wadden Sea. In 1997, a Trilateral Wadden Sea Plan was adopted. In 1986, the Wadden Sea Area was declared a biosphere reserve by UNESCO . In June 2009, the Wadden Sea (comprising the Dutch Wadden Sea Conservation Area and the German Wadden Sea National Parks of Lower Saxony and Schleswig-Holstein)

105-528: A large population of wildlife, and are a key habitat that allows tens of millions of migratory shorebirds to migrate from breeding sites in the northern hemisphere to non-breeding areas in the southern hemisphere. They are often of vital importance to migratory birds , as well as certain species of crabs , mollusks and fish . In the United Kingdom mudflats have been classified as a Biodiversity Action Plan priority habitat. The maintenance of mudflats

140-612: A large-scale autonomy in the Middle Ages. They were exempt from the Code of Jutland of 1241 and were allowed to judge according to Frisian law (see also Lex Frisionum ). When Eric IV of Denmark tried to collect the plogpennig , a tax of one penny on every plow , in the Uthlande as well, he was forced to leave the area after having lost a number of knights due to resistance against the new tax law. His brother, killer and successor Abel even lost

175-520: A result, about 90% of all the species that historically inhabited that part of the Wadden Sea are at risk. The Wadden Sea is an important habitat for both harbour and grey seals . Harbour porpoises and white-beaked dolphins are the sea's only resident cetaceans . They were once extinct in the southern part of the sea but have also re-colonized that area again. Many other cetaceans only visit seasonally, or occasionally. In early history, North Atlantic right whales and gray whales (now extinct in

210-589: A scribe who tried to translate the names of DeStrand , Eydaerstath and Hewerschop into Latin language. In 2002 the association Regionale Partnerschaft Uthlande e.V. was established which aims to promote the "Region Uthlande" that comprises the islands and halligen of Nordfriesland. Wadden Sea The Wadden Sea ( Dutch : Waddenzee [ˈʋɑdə(n)zeː] ; German : Wattenmeer [ˈvatn̩ˌmeːɐ̯] ; Low German : Wattensee or Waddenzee ; Danish : Vadehavet ; West Frisian : Waadsee ; North Frisian : di Heef )

245-585: A small and increasing breeding population of white-tailed eagles . However, the biodiversity of Wadden Sea is smaller today than it once was; for birds, greater flamingos and Dalmatian pelicans used to be common as well, at least during the Holocene climatic optimum when the climate was warmer. Due to human activity and a changing environment, species have gone extinct, while others are expected to migrate in. Larger fish including rays , Atlantic salmon and brown trout are still present in several sections of

280-596: A treaty with Bremen in the name of the Frisians. During the Middle Ages, the following Hundreds ( Harden ) were part of the Uthlande: This list of areas varies according to sources and years and the shape of the coastline has changed considerably during the last centuries. Important sources include the Danish Census Book of king Valdemar II of Denmark , and historicising maps by Johannes Mejer (printed in 1652). In

315-553: Is an intertidal zone in the southeastern part of the North Sea . It lies between the coast of northwestern continental Europe and the range of low-lying Frisian Islands , forming a shallow body of water with tidal flats and wetlands . It has a high biological diversity and is an important area for both breeding and migrating birds. In 2009, the Dutch and German parts of the Wadden Sea were inscribed on UNESCO 's World Heritage List and

350-533: Is generally understood to include all coastal regions around the Wadden Sea that participate in the trilateral cooperation between Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands. The entire area is known for its rich cultural heritage, dating back to the Roman Iron Age and the Middle Ages, and largely coincides with the area internationally referred to as Frisia . Between 2002 and 2023 stakeholder organizations and NGOs from

385-515: Is important in preventing coastal erosion. However, mudflats worldwide are under threat from predicted sea level rises , land claims for development, dredging due to shipping purposes, and chemical pollution . In some parts of the world, such as East and South-East Asia, mudflats have been reclaimed for aquaculture , agriculture , and industrial development. For example, around the Yellow Sea region of East Asia, more than 65% of mudflats present in

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420-634: The Afsluitdijk . Historically, the coastal regions were often subjected to large floods, resulting in thousands of deaths, including the Saint Marcellus' floods of 1219 and 1362, Burchardi flood of 1634 and Christmas Flood of 1717 . Some of these also significantly changed the coastline. Numerous dikes and several causeways have been built, and as a result recent floods have resulted in few or no fatalities (even if some dikes rarely and locally have been overrun in recent history). This makes it among

455-448: The Earth 's surface. They are found in sheltered areas such as bays , bayous , lagoons , and estuaries ; they are also seen in freshwater lakes and salty lakes (or inland seas) alike, wherein many rivers and creeks end. Mudflats may be viewed geologically as exposed layers of bay mud , resulting from deposition of estuarine silts , clays and aquatic animal detritus . Most of

490-647: The Frisian islands and the mainland coastal marshes , is also called the Wadden Coast. In Germany the area is referred to as North Sea Coast ( Nordseeküste ). The embanked polderlands and saltmarshes in the Wadden Sea area – including the Elbe Marshes – are referred to in Germany as North Sea coastal marshes ( Nordseemarschen ). More recent are terms such as Waddenland, Wadden Sea area and Wadden Sea Region. The latter term

525-470: The 10th to 14th centuries, overflowing and carrying away former peat land behind the coastal dunes. The present islands are a remnant of the former coastal dunes. Towards the North Sea the islands are marked by dunes and wide sandy beaches, and towards the Wadden Sea a low, tidal coast. The impact of waves and currents carrying away sediments is slowly changing both land masses and coastlines. For example,

560-512: The 19th century. Mudflat hiking , i.e., walking on the sandy flats at low tide, has become popular in the Wadden Sea. It is also a popular region for pleasure boating. The German part of the Wadden Sea was the setting for the 1903 Erskine Childers novel The Riddle of the Sands and Else Ury 's 1915 novel Nesthäkchen in the Children's Sanitorium . The area bordering the Wadden Sea, including

595-454: The Census Book there is a separate list of all inhabited islands of the west coast. The three placenames Gaestaenacka , Hwaelae major and Hwaelae minor that are mentioned there cannot be found and confirmed today. The common assumption that these islands lay west off Strand and were destroyed in 14th century storm surges is contested. The names may have resulted from faulty transcriptions by

630-600: The Danish mainland the Hundreds later became the largest administrative subdivisions. They were composed of several parishes . In mainland Jutland there were also the syssels which used to comprise a number of Hundreds, but were completely unknown in the Uthlande. The local North Frisians became direct subjects of the Danish king and fought for him against the Holy Roman Empire and Holstein . However they succeeded in gaining

665-615: The Danish part was added in June 2014. The Wadden Sea stretches from Den Helder , in the northwest of the Netherlands , past the great river estuaries of Germany to its northern boundary at Skallingen in Denmark along a total coastline of some 500 km (310 mi) and a total area of about 10,000 km (3,900 sq mi). Within the Netherlands, it is bounded from the IJsselmeer by

700-649: The North Atlantic) were present in the region, perhaps using the shallow, calm waters for feeding and breeding. It has been theorized that they were hunted to extinction in this region by shore-based whalers in medieval times. They are generally considered long-extinct in the region, but in the Netherlands, a possible right whale was observed close to beaches on Texel in the West Frisian Islands and off Steenbanken, Schouwen-Duiveland in July 2005. Recent increases in

735-742: The Wadden Sea Region cooperated in a platform or association called the Wadden Sea Forum (WSF). Shared locally with other region/s and with Germany and Denmark Tidal flat Mudflats or mud flats , also known as tidal flats or, in Ireland, slob or slobs , are coastal wetlands that form in intertidal areas where sediments have been deposited by tides or rivers . A global analysis published in 2019 suggested that tidal flat ecosystems are as extensive globally as mangroves , covering at least 127,921 km (49,391 sq mi) of

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770-588: The Wadden Sea). European oyster once formed large beds in the region and was still present until a few decades ago, when extirpated due to a combination of disease and the continued spread of the invasive Pacific oyster , which now forms large beds in the Wadden Sea. Especially the southwestern part of the Wadden Sea has been greatly reduced. Historically, the Rhine was by far the most important river flowing into this section, but it has been greatly reduced due to dams. As

805-423: The Wadden Sea, but others like European sea sturgeon only survive in the region through a reintroduction project. The world's only remaining natural population of houting survives in the Danish part of the Wadden Sea and it has been used as a basis for reintroductions further south, but considerable taxonomic confusion remains over its status (whether it is the same as the houting that once lived further south in

840-573: The early 1950s had been destroyed by the late 2000s. It is estimated that up to 16% of the world tidal flats have disappeared since the mid-1980s. Mudflat sediment deposits are focused into the intertidal zone which is composed of a barren zone and marshes. Within these areas are various ratios of sand and mud that make up the sedimentary layers. The associated growth of coastal sediment deposits can be attributed to rates of subsidence along with rates of deposition (example: silt transported via river) and changes in sea level. Barren zones extend from

875-462: The greatest part of his army and his life when he tried to again enforce the plogpennig in Frisia in 1252. In 1261 the city of Hamburg signed a peace treaty with Utlandia but it is unclear whether this meant only the three Hundreds of Eiderstedt or the entire Uthlande. Until 1284, central administrative powers had become established in a way that Valdemar IV, Duke of Schleswig was able to contract

910-476: The islands of Vlieland and Ameland have moved eastwards through the centuries, having lost land on one side and added it on the other. The Wadden Sea is famous for its rich flora and fauna , especially birds. Hundreds of thousands of waders , ducks , and geese use the area as a migration stopover or wintering site. It is also a rich habitat for gulls and terns , as well as a few species of herons , Eurasian spoonbills and birds-of-prey , including

945-401: The lowest portion of the intertidal zone to the marsh areas. Beginning in close proximity to the tidal bars, sand dominated layers are prominent and become increasingly muddy throughout the tidal channels. Common bedding types include laminated sand, ripple bedding, and bay mud. Bioturbation also has a strong presence in barren zones. Marshes contain an abundance of herbaceous plants while

980-417: The most human-altered habitats on the planet. The word wad is Frisian and Dutch for "mud flat" ( Low German and German : Watt , Danish : Vade ). The area is typified by extensive tidal mud flats , deeper tidal trenches ( tidal creeks ) and the islands that are contained within this, a region continually contested by land and sea. The landscape has been formed for a great part by storm tides in

1015-428: The number of North Atlantic humpback whales and minke whales might have resulted in more visits and possible re-colonization by the species to the areas especially around Marsdiep . Future recovery of once-extinct local bottlenose dolphins is also expected. A number of human-introduced invasive species , including algae , plants, and smaller organisms, are causing negative effects on native species. Each of

1050-548: The same time period. In the past tidal flats were considered unhealthy, economically unimportant areas and were often dredged and developed into agricultural land. Some mudflats can be extremely treacherous to walk on. For example, the mudflats surrounding Anchorage, Alaska , are made from fine glacial-silt which does not easily separate out its water, and, although seemingly solid, can quickly gel and become like quicksand when disturbed by stepping on it. Four people are known to have become stuck up to their waists and drowned when

1085-444: The sediment layers consist of thin sand and mud layers. Mudcracks are a common as well as wavy bedding planes. Marshes are also the origins of coal/peat layers because of the abundant decaying plant life. Salt pans can be distinguished in that they contain thinly laminated layers of clayey silt. The main source of the silt comes from rivers. Dried up mud along with wind erosion forms silt dunes. When flooding, rain or tides come in,

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1120-780: The sediment within a mudflat is within the intertidal zone , and thus the flat is submerged and exposed approximately twice daily. A recent global remote sensing analysis estimated that approximately 50% of the global extent of tidal flats occurs within eight countries ( Indonesia , China , Australia , United States , Canada , India , Brazil , and Myanmar ) and that 44% of the world's tidal flats occur within Asia (56,051 km or 21,641 sq mi). A 2022 analysis of tidal wetland losses and gains estimates that global tidal flats experienced losses of 7,000 km (2,700 sq mi) between 1999 and 2019, which were largely offset by global gains of 6,700 km (2,600 sq mi) over

1155-514: The three countries has designated Ramsar sites in the region (see Wadden Sea National Parks ). Although the Wadden Sea is not yet listed as a transboundary Ramsar site, a great part of the Wadden Sea is protected in cooperation of all three countries. The governments of the Netherlands, Denmark and Germany have been working together since 1978 on the protection and conservation of the Wadden Sea. Co-operation covers management, monitoring and research, as well as political matters. Furthermore, in 1982,

1190-599: The tide came in, and many others are rescued from the Anchorage mudflats each year. On the Baltic Sea coast of Germany in places, mudflats are exposed not by tidal action, but by wind-action driving water away from the shallows into the sea. This kind of wind-affected mudflat is called Windwatt in German. Tidal flats, along with intertidal salt marshes and mangrove forests, are important ecosystems . They usually support

1225-757: Was placed on the World Heritage list by UNESCO . A minor boundary modification in 2011 added the Hamburg Wadden Sea National Park to the site, and the Danish part was added to in 2014. The state of Bremen , covering part of the Weser River estuary, is not participating. Conservation efforts are coordinated by the Common Wadden Sea Secretariat, seated in Wilhelmshaven . Many of the islands have been popular seaside resorts since

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