Langøya is the third largest island of Norway (outside of

Svalbard Svalbard ( , ), also known as Spitsbergen, or Spitzbergen, is a Norwegian archipelago in the Arctic Ocean. North of mainland Europe, it is about midway between the northern coast of Norway and the North Pole. The islands of the group rang ...

), with an area of . The island is a part of the

Vesterålen Vesterålen is a district and archipelago in Nordland county, Norway. It is located just north of Lofoten and west of Harstad. It is the northernmost part of Nordland county. Sortland is the largest town, situated near the center of the arch ...

archipelago An archipelago ( ), sometimes called an island group or island chain, is a chain, cluster, or collection of islands, or sometimes a sea containing a small number of scattered islands. Examples of archipelagos include: the Indonesian Arch ...

Nordland Nordland (; smj, Nordlánnda, sma, Nordlaante, sme, Nordlánda, en, Northland) is a county in Norway in the Northern Norway region, the least populous of all 11 counties, bordering Troms og Finnmark in the north, Trøndelag in the south, ...

county,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of ...

. The island includes the municipalities of Bø and

Øksnes Øksnes is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is located on the northwestern part of the large island of Langøya, which is a part of the traditional region of Vesterålen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village ...

as well as parts of the municipalities of

Sortland or is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Vesterålen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Sortland. Other population centres in Sortland include Bø, Holand, Holmstad, ...

and

Hadsel Hadsel ( sme, Válafierda) is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional district of Vesterålen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Stokmarknes. Other villages in Hadsel include Fiskebø ...

Geography

Langøya is mountainous, with mountains reaching 400 - 700 meter above sea level, the highest is Snykolla (763 m). There are also lowland near the coasts around the island, and in some valleys, some of it is

bog A bog or bogland is a wetland that accumulates peat as a deposit of dead plant materials often mosses, typically sphagnum moss. It is one of the four main types of wetlands. Other names for bogs include mire, mosses, quagmire, and muskeg; a ...

s. The

treeline The tree line is the edge of the habitat at which trees are capable of growing. It is found at high elevations and high latitudes. Beyond the tree line, trees cannot tolerate the environmental conditions (usually cold temperatures, extreme snowp ...

is around 300 meter above sea level on Langøya. The total population on the island is 15,600 and the largest population center is Sortland (pop 5,487), another town is Myre. Langøya has been settled since the stone age. The larger island Hinnøya lies to the east (on the other side of the

Sortlandssundet Sortlandsundet or Sortlandssundet ( en, Sortland Sound''Norges Geologiske Undersøkelse'' no. 212. 1983. Trondheim: Norges Geologiske Undersokelse, p. 6.) is a strait or sound in Sortland Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It separates the ...

). The island of

Andøya Andøya is the northernmost island in the Vesterålen archipelago, situated about inside the Arctic circle. Andøya is located in Andøy Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. The main population centres on the island include the villages of ...

lies to the northeast. The small island of Skogsøya lies to the northwest. The island of

Hadseløya Hadseløya or Hadseløy is an island in Hadsel Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is located in the Vesterålen region on the north side of the Hadselfjorden. The town of Stokmarknes is situated on the northern shore of the island and t ...

lies to the south. The

69th parallel north The 69th parallel north is a circle of latitude that is 69 degrees north of the Earth's equatorial plane, in the Arctic. It crosses the Atlantic Ocean, Europe, Asia and North America, and passes through some of the southern seas of the Arcti ...

crosses Langøya, as does the 15th meridian east. Bitterstad_Hallartinden

There are several lakes on the island including Alsvågvatnet. The Eidsfjorden divides the island almost in half. The island has two road bridges connecting it to

and Hinnøya via the

Hadsel Bridge The Hadsel Bridge ( no, Hadselbrua) is a cantilever road bridge in Hadsel Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. The bridge carries Norwegian County Road 82 and it crosses the Langøysundet strait between the islands of Langøya and Børøya. ...

and

Sortland Bridge The Sortland Bridge ( no, Sortlandsbrua) is a cantilever road bridge that crosses the Sortlandssundet strait between the village of Strand on Hinnøya island and the town of Sortland on Langøya island. It is located within Sortland Municipali ...

Climate

Langøya has a

subpolar oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ...

(Cfc), with very mild winter for the location north of the Arctic Circle. The warmest temperature recorded on the island by an official weather station is at Kleiva in Sortland municipality in July 2018. The weather station near Stokmarknes Airport, Skagen is located on the southern part of the island and has recorded temperature since June 1972. Data for extremes available since 2004, there might be warmer or colder temperatures recorded before 2004.

Important Bird Area

A tract of some 3000 ha of low-lying land in central and south-eastern coastal Langøya, consisting mainly of grassland and

mudflat 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 f ...

s, and including the Vikosen

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological o ...

, has been designated an

Important Bird Area An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations. IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Inte ...

(IBA) by

BirdLife International BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding ...

(BLI) because it supports populations of several thousand pink-footed and

barnacle geese The barnacle goose (''Branta leucopsis'') is a species of goose that belongs to the genus ''Branta'' of black geese, which contains species with largely black plumage, distinguishing them from the grey ''Anser'' species. Despite its superficial s ...

on passage migration.

Media gallery

Fv915 Nordland c.jpg, The rugged western part of Langøya near Nykvåg. IMG 1578a - Lifjorden.jpg, Lifjorden; many small fjords dissect Langøya Fra Frøskeland mot Ræka - IMG 0316a.jpg, View near Frøskeland towards Ræka mt File:Map-of-Lofoten-and-Vesteraalen.svg, Map of the area

References

Vesterålen Hadsel Sortland Øksnes Bø, Nordland Islands of Nordland Nature reserves in Norway Important Bird Areas of Norway Important Bird Areas of Arctic islands {{Nordland-island-stub