According to a survey by the Natural Resources Institute Finland, the existence of the Saimaa ringed seal is a source of joy. For many respondents, the survival of the seal in Saimaa is particularly important, and it is also a symbol of nature conservation.
A survey by the Natural Resources Institute Finland investigated Finns’ thoughts and attitudes towards the Saimaa ringed seal: many Finns are happy to encounter one.
The joy of knowing that the seal exists and will continue to exist in the future was particularly important to some respondents.
The sampling of the survey focused on residents of the Saimaa region. The total number of respondents was about 1 500, of which about 600 were residents of the Saimaa region.
Norppa doesn’t only bring joy as a relaxed plodder – the symbolic value of the norppa is also great. According to the survey, the roe deer is seen both as a symbol of nature conservation and as a symbol of the Saimaa lake region.
But the Saimaa loiterer is not all fun and games
Although those who live in the area or who have visited Saimaa felt that almost all things related to the norpa are more important than Finns in general, about 14 percent of the respondents do not consider the values \u200b\u200bof the existence of the norpa or the experiences related to seeing it as important.
Some of the landowners in the area have a less positive attitude towards norpa. Four percent of the locals who responded have negative experiences with Saimaa Norba.
The values \u200b\u200brelated to Norpa’s existence are emphasized the most by young townspeople who had not visited Saimaa. According to the Natural Resource Center, this is partly related to people’s appreciation of biodiversity. A good third of the respondents brought up values \u200b\u200brelated to the existence of norpa.
The survey was carried out as a part of the EU-funded Our Joint Saimaa Norpam – Life project. Metsähallitus coordinates the project and several Finnish universities, research institutes, nature organizations and authorities participate in it.