Balmer See
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The Balmer See is the southeastern
embayment A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a ''gulf'', ''sea'', ''sound'', or ''bight''. A ''cove'' is a small, ci ...
of the
Achterwasser The Achterwasser (Low German ''achtern'' = "rear, behind") is a lagoon forming a bay on the Peenestrom river, which flows into the Baltic Sea. This lagoon extends so far into the island of Usedom, that it is only separated from the Baltic Sea by ...
on the island of
Usedom Usedom ( , ) is a Baltic Sea island in Pomerania, divided between Germany and Poland. It is the second largest Pomeranian island after Rügen, and the most populous island in the Baltic Sea. It lies north of the Szczecin Lagoon estuary of the ...
off Germany's Baltic coast. The northwestern tongue of land, Cosim, together with the two small islets of
Böhmke Böhmke is a small, uninhabited island that lies between the lakes of Nepperminer See and Balmer See in the southeastern part of the Achterwasser, which separates the large Baltic Sea island Usedom from the mainland of Germany and Poland. The isl ...
and Werder are designated as a nature reserve and bird sanctuary. To the south is the only golf course on the island - with 27 holes and 120 hectares in area. To the east are the two small villages of Balm (ca. 150 inhabitants) and Neppermin (350 inhabitants); the bay between Neppermin and the Schwedenschanze to the north is called ''Nepperminer See''.


History

Balm was first mentioned in 1236 under the Slavic name of ''Bialdab''. At that time it belonged, together with five other parished on Usedom (
Ückeritz Ückeritz is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Greifswald district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. A small coastal bathing resort, Ückeritz lies on the island of Usedom on the Baltic Sea. It is located within the Usedom Nature Park and is o ...
,
Mellenthin Mellenthin is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Greifswald district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. Points of interest * Usedoms Botanischer Garten Mellenthin, a botanical garden A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botan ...
,
Loddin Loddin is a municipality on Usedom Island, in the Vorpommern-Greifswald district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. A small coastal bathing resort, Loddin lies on an isthmus on the island of Usedom on the Baltic Sea. It is located within the U ...
,
Suckow Suckow is a village and a former municipality in the Ludwigslust-Parchim district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and ...
and Krienke), to the estate of the bishops of Cammin. In a deed dated 15 March 1270 they exchanged these parishes, at the request of Duke
Barnim I Barnim I the Good ( 1217/1219 – 13 November 1278), from the Griffin dynasty, was a Duke of Pomerania (''ducis Slauorum et Cassubie'') from 1220 until his death. Life Son of Duke Bogislaw II and Miroslava of Pomerelia, he succeeded to the Duc ...
of
Pomerania-Stettin The Duchy of Pomerania-Stettin, also known as the Duchy of Stettin, and the Duchy of Szczecin, was a feudal duchy in Farther Pomerania within the Holy Roman Empire. Its capital was Stettin (Szczecin). It was ruled by the Griffin dynasty.B. Dopier ...
, for Damerow in
East Pomerania Eastern Pomerania can refer to distinct parts of Pomerania: *The historical region of Farther Pomerania, which was the eastern part of the Duchy, later Province of Pomerania *The historical region of Pomerelia including Gdańsk Pomerania, located ...
(near
Naugard Nowogard () (; ) is a town in northwestern Poland, in the West Pomeranian Voivodeship. it had a population of 16,733. Name ''Nowogard'' is a combination of two Slavic terms: novi (new) and gard, which is Pomeranian for ''town'', ''city'', or ' ...
), that had belonged to the
Premonstratensian The Order of Canons Regular of Prémontré (), also known as the Premonstratensians, the Norbertines and, in Britain and Ireland, as the White Canons (from the colour of their habit), is a religious order of canons regular in the Catholic Chur ...
abbey of
Grobe Gouais blanc () or Weißer Heunisch () is a white grape variety that is seldom grown today but is important as the ancestor of many traditional French and German grape varieties. The name ''Gouais'' derives from the old French adjective ‘ ...
near
Usedom Usedom ( , ) is a Baltic Sea island in Pomerania, divided between Germany and Poland. It is the second largest Pomeranian island after Rügen, and the most populous island in the Baltic Sea. It lies north of the Szczecin Lagoon estuary of the ...
. That apart, the history of the region is linked to that of
Pomerania Pomerania ( ; ; ; ) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The central and eastern part belongs to the West Pomeranian Voivodeship, West Pomeranian, Pomeranian Voivod ...
and
Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...
. The area remained untouched by the historical tourism that had established itself in the Baltic Sea resorts in the 19th century. This was also true for the period from the
Weimar Republic The Weimar Republic, officially known as the German Reich, was the German Reich, German state from 1918 to 1933, during which it was a constitutional republic for the first time in history; hence it is also referred to, and unofficially proclai ...
to the end of
East Germany East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...
. Not until after 1990 did the state of
Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (MV; ; ), also known by its Anglicisation, anglicized name Mecklenburg–Western Pomerania, is a Federated state, state in the north-east of Germany. Of the country's States of Germany, sixteen states, Mecklenburg-Vorpom ...
take steps to develop the infrastructure of the region. In 1998 the golf course was built together with surrounding hotel and apartment complex. It is intended to form part of an environmentally friendly tourist industry that is in harmony with the natural resources of the landscape.


Nature conservation

Even in the days of
East Germany East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...
, in 1967, the two small islets of Böhmke and Werder, an area of 118 hectares, were designated as a bird reserve. Around 1980 the numbers of
black-headed gull The black-headed gull (''Chroicocephalus ridibundus'') is a small gull that breeds in much of the Palearctic in Europe and Asia, and also locally in smaller numbers in coastal eastern Canada. Most of the population is migratory and winters fu ...
s got out of hand: there were 14,000 of them, their droppings encouraged the rampant growth of stinging nettles and rarer, more sensitive species of bird had no chance. Only when numbers were brought under control and a small herd of
Gotland sheep The Gotland, also called the Gotland Pelt ( Swedish: Pälsfår), is a breed of domestic sheep named for the Swedish island of Gotland. A breed of Northern European short-tailed sheep, they are thought to be the product of crossbreeding between th ...
were introduced did the nature of the vegetation change; the numbers of black-headed gulls fell to about 8,000,
common tern The common tern (''Sterna hirundo'') is a seabird in the family Laridae. This bird has a circumpolar distribution, its four subspecies breeding in Temperateness, temperate and subarctic regions of Europe, Asia and North America. It is stron ...
s and
black-tailed godwit The black-tailed godwit (''Limosa limosa'') is a large, long-legged, long-billed shorebird first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758. It is a member of the godwit genus, '' Limosa''. There are four subspecies, all with orange head, neck and ches ...
returned. In addition,
gadwall The gadwall (''Mareca strepera'') is a common and widespread dabbling duck in the family Anatidae. Taxonomy The gadwall was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his landmark 1758 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae''. DNA studies have shown th ...
,
tufted duck The tufted duck (or tufted pochard) (''Aythya fuligula'') is a small diving duck with a population of nearly one million birds, found in northern Eurasia. They are partially migratory. The scientific name is derived from Ancient Greek , an unide ...
,
pochard Pochard is a common name used for several species of diving ducks: *Four species in the genus ''Aythya'': ** Common pochard, ''Aythya ferina'' ** Baer's pochard, ''Aythya baeri'' ** Ferruginous pochard, ''Aythya nyroca'' ** Madagascar pochard, ' ...
and
mallard The mallard () or wild duck (''Anas platyrhynchos'') is a dabbling duck that breeds throughout the temperate and subtropical Americas, Eurasia, and North Africa. It has been introduced to New Zealand, Australia, Peru, Brazil, Uruguay, Arge ...
breed on the islands. In 1996 the Cosim Peninsula Nature Reserve (85 ha) was established; in GDR times it had been used as pasture and peat bog. Footpaths through
salt marsh A salt marsh, saltmarsh or salting, also known as a coastal salt marsh or a tidal marsh, is a coastal ecosystem in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and open saltwater or brackish water that is regularly flooded by the tides. I ...
es,
reed bed A reedbed or reed bed is a natural habitat found in floodplains, waterlogged depressions and estuaries. Reedbeds are part of a succession from young reeds colonising open water or wet ground through a gradation of increasingly dry ground. As ...
s and
alder Alders are trees of the genus ''Alnus'' in the birch family Betulaceae. The genus includes about 35 species of monoecious trees and shrubs, a few reaching a large size, distributed throughout the north temperate zone with a few species ex ...
woods cross the area today. With a little luck, the rarer species of bird may be seen on the reedy shores, that breed on both islands. These include the
white stork The white stork (''Ciconia ciconia'') is a large bird in the stork family, Ciconiidae. Its plumage is mainly white, with black on the bird's wings. Adults have long red legs and long pointed red beaks, and measure on average from beak tip to en ...
and
grey heron The grey heron (''Ardea cinerea'') is a long-legged wading bird of the heron family, Ardeidae, native throughout temperate Europe and Asia, and also parts of Africa. It is resident in much of its range, but some populations from the more norther ...
. In winter
white-tailed eagle The white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), sometimes known as the 'sea eagle', is a large bird of prey, widely distributed across temperate Eurasia. Like all eagles, it is a member of the family Accipitridae (or accipitrids) which also ...
s may also be seen, west of the nature reserve footpath to the old manor house of Dewichow (small holiday village) and the transition to the lake of Krienker See.


External links

Bays of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania Bays of the Baltic Sea Usedom Peenestrom {{Coord, 53, 56, 59, N, 14, 1, 16, E, type:waterbody_region:DE-MV, display=title