Estonia

Estonia is a low-lying coastal country located in the Baltic region. It is characterised by a significant number of islands and islets, with the largest ones being Saaremaa and Hiiumaa. The country has a terrestrial area of close to 45,000km² and a marine area of approximately 36,000km². Estonia shares its borders with 2 neighbouring countries. The highest point in Estonia is Suur Munamägi, reaching a height of 318m. With a population of 1.3 million people, Estonia has a population density of 30.6 people per km².

of land covered

by protected areas

of marine waters

covered by protected areas

species protected

under EU law

habitats protected

under EU law

Protected areas in Estonia cover a total of km² on land and km² at sea.

Percentage of area covered by protected areas

Currently, of Estonia terrestrial territory is designated as protected areas, which is slightly below the EU value of 26.4% with the target of 30% to be reached at the EU level by 2030, as set by the EU Biodiversity Strategy. With a coverage of in its marine waters, Estonia surpasses the EU value of 12.1%.

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Number of protected areas

With a total of protected areas, Estonia has one of the highest numbers of sites in the EU, largely due to the high number ( ) of nationally designated areas. Estonia’s network also includes Natura 2000 sites. These Natura 2000 sites are designated under the Birds Directive, encompassing Special Protection Areas, and the Habitats Directive, encompassing Sites of Community Importance. Many sites are designated under both Directives.

Number of protected areas

Protected areas designated

under national laws

Designated sites

in the Natura 2000 network

Distribution of protected areas between national designations and Natura 2000

In Estonia, the majority ( ) of the protected areas in the terrestrial environment are those areas where nationally designated and Natura 2000 sites overlap. Additionally, is covered solely by nationally designated areas, with only a very small portion (less than 1%) covered by Natura 2000 sites only. Almost the entirety of the marine protected areas network in Estonia is designated both as Natura 2000 and under national laws.

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Spatial distribution of protected areas network

Protected areas designated under national laws

Designated sites in the Natura 2000 network

Size distribution of protected areas network

The majority (84%) of protected areas in Estonia are less than 1km² in size, which is higher than the average proportion of small protected areas across the EU. Only about 2% of sites are larger than 1,000km². However, the distribution of protected areas in the marine waters of Estonia presents a more heterogeneous picture, with the majority of marine protected areas being 10-100km².

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Natura 2000 sites

Natura 2000 sites in Estonia cover species and habitats from the nature directives. The number of species and habitats protected in each site varies depending on the location of the site, the biodiversity in the region, the designation being used, and the features the site is being created to protect.

Species protected in Estonia under EU law fall under the Habitats and Birds Directives. Estonia hosts protected under the Habitats Directive, which is approximately 7% of the total of the Habitats Directive’s species and protected birds, which is approximately 50% of the species protected under the Birds Directive.

species protected under EU law

species under the Habitats Directive

species under the Birds Directive

Conservation Status of species: Habitats Directive

In Estonia, of species assessments indicate a good conservation status, while the EU average corresponds to 27.5%. The proportion of assessments indicating bad conservation status is reaching , compared to the EU average of 20.6%.

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Protected species composition by taxonomic group

In Estonia, the distribution of protected species across taxonomic groups highlights the prominence of birds, comprising the largest proportion at 70.5%. They are followed by mammals, accounting for 7.6% of protected species, and arthropods, representing 6.7%.

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Conservation Status by Taxa

In Estonia, the assessment of species groups reveals that non-vascular plants have the highest proportion of species with a good conservation status, standing at 100%. Following closely behind are arthropods, with 68.1% of species in good conservation status and mammals (64%). On the other hand, reptiles exhibit the highest percentage of species with a bad conservation status, reaching 100%. All other invertebrates have poor conservation status.

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Habitats protected in Estonia under EU law fall under the Habitats Directive. Estonia hosts habitat types, which is approximately 25.8% of the total of habitat types protected by the Habitats Directive.

habitats protected under EU law in Estonia

Conservation status of habitats

In Estonia the 56.7% of habitats assessments indicate a good conservation status which is considerably above the EU average of 14.7%. The proportion of assessments indicating a bad conservation status, amounting to 6.7%, is largely below the EU average of 35.8%.

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Protected habitat composition by group

In Estonia the group of protected habitats with the largest number consists of coastal and salt-tolerant habitats, accounting for 21,6% of the total. Following closely behind are forests, encompassing 16,6% of the protected habitats.

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Conservation status by group

In Estonia the assessment of habitat groups reveals that sclerophyllous scrub and heath and scrub have the highest proportion of good conservation status, standing at 100%. Following behind are coastal habitats, with 92.3% of habitat types in good conservation status. On the other hand, forests exhibit the highest percentage of habitat types with a bad conservation status, reaching 20%, while grasslands have a proportion of habitat types in bad conservation status at 12.5%.

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Estonia is predominantly characterised by two main types of ecosystems: forest ecosystems, which cover 59.7% of the country, followed by agroecosystems occupying 29.6% of the land area. However, Estonia has relatively smaller proportions of rivers and lakes (4.63%), wetland ecosystems (3.5%), urban areas (2.3%), and heathlslands (0.2%).

In terms of the protected area network, forests constitute the largest portion, covering 60.2% of the protected areas. Wetlands make up 14.9% of the protected areas and rivers and lakes contribute to 12.37%. Agroecosystems represent 12%, while heathlands comprise 0.5% and urban areas account for 0.2%.

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