Peberholm
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Peberholm ( , sv, Pepparholm, links=no ()), is a small
artificial island An artificial island is an island that has been constructed by people rather than formed by natural means. Artificial islands may vary in size from small islets reclaimed solely to support a single pillar of a building or structure to those tha ...
in the Danish part of the
Øresund Øresund or Öresund (, ; da, Øresund ; sv, Öresund ), commonly known in English as the Sound, is a strait which forms the Danish–Swedish border, separating Zealand (Denmark) from Scania (Sweden). The strait has a length of ; its width v ...
strait, created as part of the
Øresund Bridge The Öresund or Øresund Bridge ( da, Øresundsbroen ; sv, Öresundsbron ; hybrid name: ) is a combined railway and motorway bridge across the Øresund strait between Denmark and Sweden. It is the longest in Europe with both roadway and rai ...
connecting
Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...
with
Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
. Peberholm lies approximately 1 km south of the small natural island of
Saltholm Saltholm (; ''Salt Islet'') is a Danish island in the Øresund, the strait that separates Denmark and Sweden. It is located to the east of the Danish island of Amager in Tårnby municipality and lies just to the west of the sea border between D ...
(''Salt Islet''), and was named to complement it. It has an area of and belongs to Denmark.


Reasons for construction

The reason for constructing the island was to have a crossover point between the tunnel and the bridge. The tunnel was built since a bridge spanning the entire link between Malmö and Copenhagen would have interfered with obstacle-free zones around
Kastrup Airport Copenhagen Airport, Kastrup ( da, Københavns Lufthavn, Kastrup, ; ) is an international airport serving Copenhagen, Denmark, Zealand, the Øresund Region, and southern Sweden including Scania. It is the second largest airport in the Nordic cou ...
. Another reason was to provide an opportunity for large ships to pass the Öresund without worrying about the height of the bridge. To make the Øresund Bridge higher would interfere with the freight train traffic because a steeper gradient would be needed. The border between Swedish and Danish
railway signalling Railway signalling (), also called railroad signaling (), is a system used to control the movement of railway traffic. Trains move on fixed rails, making them uniquely susceptible to collision. This susceptibility is exacerbated by the enormou ...
and railway traffic control is on Peberholm. There is an exit from the motorway on the island, banned from unauthorised traffic, and a
helicopter pad A helipad is a landing area or platform for helicopters and powered lift aircraft. While helicopters and powered lift aircraft are able to operate on a variety of relatively flat surfaces, a fabricated helipad provides a clearly marked hard s ...
mainly planned for usage at traffic accidents ().


Built to preserve ecology

The original designs for a bridge across the Øresund required extensive use of Saltholm as a stepping-stone for the bridge. They required either the construction of both a motorway and railway across Saltholm or an expansion of the existing island to serve the same purpose. Both of these options were ultimately abandoned in order to protect the island's
ecology Ecology () is the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their physical environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere level. Ecology overlaps wi ...
; Danish and Swedish politicians decided instead to construct an artificial island immediately south of Saltholm to achieve that goal. The location was chosen in the belief that it would ensure the freest flow of water through the sound, a key element in the debate about whether or not the bridge should be constructed. Peberholm is protected by strict laws. Only biologists are allowed one annual visit to the areas of the island outside of the railroad and highway to which the island owes its creation. The island is part of
Natura 2000 Natura 2000 is a network of nature protection areas in the territory of the European Union. It is made up of Special Areas of Conservation and Special Protection Areas designated under the Habitats Directive and the Birds Directive, respectively ...
area 142, comprising Saltholm and surrounding waters with a total area of . The same area is also under two birdprotections as habitats H110 and H126. The laws did not prevent it from being used as a border control station during the
2020 coronavirus pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...
.


Development

Peberholm is considered to be a biological experiment. Scientists predicted that nature would colonize it and make the island flourish on its own, without any human interaction whatsoever. As of June 2007, scientists from the Biological Society of Lund had registered 454 species of plants on the island.Nye plante- og fuglearter på Peberholm
2770 Tårnby, week 25, 2007.
Also resident to the island were about 20 species of spiders, and approximately 12 species of birds. Since 2008, both the quantity of birds and the number of bird species have seen an increase, and now between 20 and 30 species breed on Peberholm regularly. The island is largely inhabited by several kinds of breeding gulls, and some locally threatened species have also found a home here as breeders, including the
Mediterranean gull The Mediterranean gull (''Ichthyaetus melanocephalus'') is a small gull. The scientific name is from Ancient Greek. The genus ''Ichthyaetus'' is from ''ikhthus'', "fish", and ''aetos'', "eagle", and the specific ''melanocephalus'' is from ''mel ...
and
European rock pipit The European rock pipit (''Anthus petrosus''), or just rock pipit, is a species of small passerine bird that breeds in western Europe on rocky coasts. It has streaked greyish-brown upperparts and buff underparts, and is similar in appearance to ...
in some years. Many
geese A goose (plural, : geese) is a bird of any of several waterfowl species in the family (biology), family Anatidae. This group comprises the genera ''Anser (bird), Anser'' (the grey geese and white geese) and ''Branta'' (the black geese). Some o ...
,
duck Duck is the common name for numerous species of waterfowl in the family Anatidae. Ducks are generally smaller and shorter-necked than swans and geese, which are members of the same family. Divided among several subfamilies, they are a form t ...
s,
great cormorant The great cormorant (''Phalacrocorax carbo''), known as the black shag in New Zealand and formerly also known as the great black cormorant across the Northern Hemisphere, the black cormorant in Australia, and the large cormorant in India, is a w ...
s, and
wader 245px, A flock of Dunlins and Red knots">Red_knot.html" ;"title="Dunlins and Red knot">Dunlins and Red knots Waders or shorebirds are birds of the order Charadriiformes commonly found wikt:wade#Etymology 1, wading along shorelines and mudflat ...
s rest on the small island and the
White-tailed eagle The white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla'') is a very large species of sea eagle widely distributed across temperate Palearctic, Eurasia. Like all eagles, it is a member of the family Accipitridae (or accipitrids) which includes other diur ...
is often observed here in winter. The
European green toad The European green toad (''Bufotes viridis'') is a species of toad found in steppes, mountainous areas, semi-deserts, urban areas and other habitats in mainland Europe, ranging from far eastern France and Denmark to the Balkans and Western Russi ...
, which is rare and protected in Denmark, was found living in several ditches. In 2007–08 a count found c. 2,500 individuals, which is among the largest populations in Scandinavia. It is assumed that toads from Saltholm have swum across. Three species of mice have also populated Peberholm, from very early on, and since 2010,
hare Hares and jackrabbits are mammals belonging to the genus ''Lepus''. They are herbivores, and live solitarily or in pairs. They nest in slight depressions called forms, and their young are able to fend for themselves shortly after birth. The ge ...
s have crossed the ice from Saltholm as well and are now breeding on Peberholm. It is important to keep these populations under surveillance, as mice in particular are known to be potentially dangerous to the rails stability.''"Peberholm – an artificial gem of nature"'' From 2015, white
rabbit Rabbits, also known as bunnies or bunny rabbits, are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also contains the hares) of the order Lagomorpha (which also contains the pikas). ''Oryctolagus cuniculus'' includes the European rabbit speci ...
s too have been seen. They are assumed to have been released from someone's car. In the years 2004–08 surveys focused on insects registered a total of 345 beetle species, 421 species of butterflies, and 18 species of bees. This is considered a relatively low diversity compared to similar habitats of Denmark and Sweden. Still, some of the species found on the island are rare or threatened in the region. The population of butterflies seems peculiarly skewed towards regionally uncommon or rare species, including '' Epiblema grandaevana'' (a species of moth), and Bath White (''
Pontia daplidice ''Pontia daplidice'', the Bath white, is a small butterfly of the family Pieridae, the yellows and whites, which occurs in the Palearctic region. It is common in central and southern Europe, migrating northwards every summer, often reaching south ...
''). In 2005 the
Hobo spider The hobo spider (''Eratigena agrestis'', formerly ''Tegenaria agrestis'') is a member of the family of spiders known colloquially as funnel web spiders, but not to be confused with the Australian funnel-web spider. Individuals construct a funnel ...
was discovered here, a spider that is only regionally known from a certain spot in
Jutland Jutland ( da, Jylland ; german: Jütland ; ang, Ēota land ), known anciently as the Cimbric or Cimbrian Peninsula ( la, Cimbricus Chersonesus; da, den Kimbriske Halvø, links=no or ; german: Kimbrische Halbinsel, links=no), is a peninsula of ...
. It is thought that it migrated here by trains from abroad. In 2006, the
weevil Weevils are beetles belonging to the Taxonomic rank, superfamily Curculionoidea, known for their elongated snouts. They are usually small, less than in length, and Herbivore, herbivorous. Approximately 97,000 species of weevils are known. They b ...
species '' Ceutorhynchus resedae'' was also discovered, a unique find in Denmark.


References


Sources

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External links

{{Denmark islands Artificial islands of Denmark Tårnby Municipality Øresund Bridge Øresund