Blå Jungfrun

The uninhabited island Swedish Blue Maiden ( "Blue Virgin " ) located in the northern Kalmar Strait, between the Baltic Sea coast of Sweden and the northern tip of the island of Öland. The island has an area of 0.66 km ². Its highest point is 86 meters above the sea level. While the northern part is rugged and bare, while the southern area is flat and covered with deciduous forest. The island consists of large, interlocking areas and polished by ice granite cliffs.

The granite

Blue Maiden - Granite is Sweden's southern Rapakiwi. It is characterized by reddish-brown large alkali feldspars in a pyterlitischen structure. The geographically and geologically nearest rock, which has a similar structure, the Götemaren granite. That being said, there are such significant Pyterlitgefüge in the east of the Åland Islands and in mainland Finland. The impressive granite caves on Blue Maiden is moulins, which are called jättegrytor ( "giant pots ").

Fauna and Flora

On the island there was never a settled population. In mammals, there are only hares and bats. The Black Guillemot is the typical for the island bird. A species-rich lichen flora makes the island vegetation interesting.

Popular belief

The island had in the southern Swedish popular belief, a block mountain ( chunks ) in Germany similar meaning, why it received ( blå in the meaning of " black ", " dark "), the epithet Blåkulla. In contrast to the German superstitions of the Witches' Sabbath is not to be held in the Walpurgisnacht but on Maundy Thursday. The sailors avoided the place therefore for a long time.

A maze is located at the southern tip of the island in the form of a stone circle ( trojeborgen, Troja Castle ). The plant has fifteen rings. She was described by Carl Linnaeus. Their significance is not known.

National park

The island is located in the National Park of Blue Maiden, the ² consists of water with a total area of 1.98 km ² to 1.32 km. The area could be acquired with the help of donations from the business tycoons Torsten Krueger and 1926, designated as a National Park. In 1988, instead of an extension of the national park. The area is designated as a Natura 2000 site.

Traffic

The island is accessible in summer with excursion boats from Oskarshamn on the mainland or from Byxelkrok Öland off.