Jotunheimen

Jotunheimen national park

Jotunheimen The national park has the highest mountains in Norway - with Galdhøpiggen as the highest peak. The national park is known as a popular base for traditional outdoor activities, hiking, mountaineering, hunting and fishing.

Wildlife

Life in the high mountains is only for those who have cracked the code. It is not for everyone to survive long winters and strong winds. Here live animals and birds that cope with conditions that one would not think were possible to live in. Wildlife in Jotunheimen ranging from hardy small birds to predators with falconry eyes and sharp noses. They are all high-altitude specialists.

Wolverine
Agile and strong, the wolverine roams the mountains as a hunter and scavenger. It is a solitary animal with very large habitats. The wolverine benefits from the numerous presence of reindeer, with whom it also shares its habitat.

Reindeer
In Norway, we have an international responsibility to care for wild reindeer: About 90 percent of the world's wild tundra reindeer are found here. This high-altitude species is better adapted to low temperatures and barren pastures, and the herds are constantly migrating between grazing and calving areas throughout the year. Wild reindeer live in the West Jotunheimen , while the domesticated reindeer herders in Vågå and Lom operate large domesticated reindeer herds in the east of Jotunheimen

Mountain birds
When we are in the mountains, we both see and hear life in the air. The large birds of prey hunt small game, rodents and small birds. The second largest bird of prey in Norway, the golden eagle, can measure a full 2.2 meters between the tips of its wings. The hawk is the largest, which is common among birds of prey. The gyrfalcon also has a wide span between the tips of its wings: measuring up to 1.6 meters, this is our largest falcon. It is a fast hunter that usually strikes its prey in the air at high speed. Grouse is on the menu, and it therefore likes to nest in areas with a good population of grouse. Small birds can also become the gyrfalcon's prey. The birds are part of the soundscape in the mountains. The magical song of the heilo accompanies many mountain hikers, and if you hear the sound like two stones hitting each other, it is the stone splatter that is keeping an eye on you. With its blue and reddish-brown breast, the bluethroat is exotic to behold, and it is found in birch forests and willow thickets, even in the high mountains.

Swings in the mountains
The barren habitat in the mountains means that many species are vulnerable and completely dependent on good food supplies and undisturbed areas. This is the only way they can maintain their populations. Every year, the mountains are overrun with small and fierce lemmings. Large populations of small rodents provide good conditions and more food for predators and birds of prey. In such years, the grouse escape more easily and produce more young in the litter. This way, the grouse population can increase after good small rodent years, and also decrease after years with low small rodent numbers.

The landscape

Bedrock
The Caledonian mountain range stretches across Norway, from north to south. We know part of this mountain range as Jotunheimen . Jotunheimen Its mountains and peaks are resistant to erosion, which is ensured by the hard Jotun rocks gabbro and syenite. Other places in Jotunheimen We find looser and more nutritious rocks, which provide better soil for diverse vegetation.

Lakes
The queen of the mountain lakes is the emerald-green Gjende. The green color is due to the supply of glacial water. The glacial rivers carry mud with tiny clay particles down into the mountain lakes. The particles reflect the sunlight and give the water its distinctive green color. When the melting in the mountains is large, the color is at its most intense.

Botanical diversity
Issoleia grows the highest of all the flowering plants: All the way up to 2370 m above sea level. above Glittertinden! As soon as the snow has melted, the mogop and red herring also appear. Where there is good soil, several typical lowland species grow well above 1000 m above sea level. here in Jotunheimen , between the lilies of the valley. This poisonous plant was previously used in herbal medicine in the risky treatment of heart disease, colds and stomach aches. Along the north side of Gjende and below Besseggen, the chalky soil provides a botanical diversity in lush mountain birch forest. On steep slopes grows the white-clad mountain queen, also called bergfrue and locally called vianvang. This is Norway's national flower.

Low
Map lichen is a common species in Norway. Because map lichen does not survive under ice, we can calculate how long an area has been ice-free by looking at its size. Map lichen grows slowly: If an individual has a diameter of five centimeters, it means that it is about 250 years old. The lichen begins to grow as soon as ice and snow no longer cover the rock all year round. Light rocks without lichen have therefore been ice-free for a shorter time than rocks covered with lichen.