Lake Constance

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This article is about the European lake. For the lake in New Zealand, see Lake Constance (New Zealand).
"Bodensee" redirects here. For the municipality, see Bodensee, Lower Saxony.
Lake Constance
Bodensee
Bodensee satellit.jpg
satellite image
Karte Bodensee.png
map
Location Germany, Switzerland, Austria
Coordinates 47°35′N 9°28′E / 47.583°N 9.467°E / 47.583; 9.467Coordinates: 47°35′N 9°28′E / 47.583°N 9.467°E / 47.583; 9.467
Primary inflows Rhine
Primary outflows Rhine
Catchment area 11,500 km2 (4,400 sq mi)
Basin countries Germany, Switzerland, Austria
Max. length 63 km (39 mi)
Max. width 14 km (8.7 mi)
Surface area 571 km2 (220 sq mi)
Average depth 90 m (300 ft)
Max. depth 251 m (823 ft)
Water volume 51.4 km3 (12 cu mi)
Residence time 4.3 years
Surface elevation 395 m (1,296 ft)
Frozen 1795, 1830, 1880 (partial), 1963
Islands Mainau, Reichenau, Lindau
Sections/sub-basins Obersee, Lake Überlingen Untersee, Zeller See, Gnadensee
Settlements see list

Lake Constance (German: Bodensee) is a lake on the Rhine at the northern foot of the Alps, and consists of three bodies of water: the Obersee or Upper Lake Constance,[1] the Untersee or Lower Lake Constance,[1] and a connecting stretch of the Rhine, called the Seerhein. These waterbodies lie within the Lake Constance Basin (Bodenseebecken), which is part of the Alpine Foreland and through which the River Rhine flows.

The lake is situated in Germany, Switzerland and Austria near the Alps. Its shorelines lie in the German states of Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg, the Austrian state of Vorarlberg, and the Swiss cantons of Thurgau, St Gallen and Schaffhausen. The river Rhine flows into the lake from the south, with its original course forming the Austro-Swiss border, and has its outflow of the "Lower Lake" where - except for Schaffhausen - it forms the German-Swiss border until the city Basel.

Description[edit]

Freshwater Lake Constance is central Europe's third largest, after Lake Balaton and Lake Geneva. It is 63 km (39 mi) long, and at its widest point, nearly 14 km (8.7 mi). It covers approximately 571 km2 (220 sq mi),[2] and is 395 m (1,296 ft) above sea level. The greatest depth is 252 metres (827 ft) in the middle of the eastern part (Obersee). Its volume is approximately 10×10^9 m3 (13×10^9 cu yd). The lake has four parts: the main section, called Obersee, 476 km2 (184 sq mi); the north section, Überlinger See, 61 km2 (24 sq mi); the west section, Untersee, 63 km2 (24 sq mi); and the northwest section, the Zeller See and Gnadensee. The regulated Rhine flows into the lake in the southeast, through the Obersee, the city of Konstanz and the Untersee, and flows out near Stein am Rhein. The lake itself is an important drinking water source for southwestern Germany, called Bodensee-Wasserversorgung ("Lake Constance Water Supply"). The culminating point of the lake's drainage basin is the Tödi at 3,614 metres above sea level.[3]

Car ferries link Romanshorn to Friedrichshafen, and Konstanz to Meersburg.

History[edit]

Lake Constance was formed by the Rhine Glacier during the ice age and is a zungenbecken lake. After the end of the last glacial period, about 10,000 years ago, the Obersee and Untersee still formed a single lake. The downward erosion of the High Rhine caused the lake level to gradually sink and a sill, the Konstanzer Schwelle, to emerge.

The Rhine, the Bregenzer Ache, and the Dornbirner Ache carry sediments from the Alps to the lake, thus gradually decreasing the depth and coastline extension of the lake in the southeast. In antiquity the two lakes still had different names; later, for reasons which are unknown, they came to have the same name.

Name[edit]

The Roman geographer, Pomponius Mela, was the first to mention the lake around 43 AD, calling the Lacus Venetus and the Untersee Lacus Acronius, the Rhine passing through both. Around 75 AD, The naturalist Pliny the Elder called the entire Lake Constance, Lacus Raetiae Brigantinus after the main Roman town on the lake, Brigantium (later Bregenz). This name is associated with the Celtic Brigantii who lived here, although it is not clear whether the place was named after the tribe or the inhabitants of the region were named after their main settlement. Ammianus Marcellinus later used the form Lacus Brigantiae.[4]

The current German name of Bodensee derives from the place name Bodman, which probably originally derived from the Old High German bodamon which meant "on the soils", indicating a place on level terrain by the lake..[5] This place, situated at the west end of Lake Überlingen (Überlinger See), had a more supraregional character for a certain period in the early Middle Ages as a Frankish imperial palace (Königspfalz), Alamannian ducal seat and mint, which is why the name may have been transferred to the lake ("lake, by which Bodman is situated" = Bodmansee). From 833/834 AD, in Latin sources, the name appears in its latinised form lacus potamicus..[6] Therefore, the name actually derived from the Bodman Pfalz (Latinized as Potamum) was wrongly assumed by monastic scholars like Walahfrid Strabo to be derived from the Greek word potamos for "river" and meant "river lake". They may also have been influenced by the fact that the Rhine flowed through the lake..[7]

Wolfram von Eschenbach describes it in Middle High German as the Bodemensee or Bodemsee[8] which has finally evolved into the present German name, Bodensee. The name may be linked to that of the Bodanrück, the hill range between Lake Überlingen and the Untersee, and the history of the House of Bodman.

The German name of the lake, Bodensee, has been adopted by many other languages, for example: Dutch: Bodenmeer, Danish: Bodensøen, Norwegian: Bodensjøen, Swedish: Bodensjön, Islandic: Bodenvatn, Finnish: Bodenjärvi, Estonian: Bodeni järv, Lithuanian: Bodeno ežeras, Latvian: Bodenezers, Russian: Боденское озеро, Polish: Jezioro Bodeńskie, Czech: Bodamské jezero, Slovak: Bodamské jazero, Hungarian: Bodeni-tó, Bulgarian: Боденско езеро, Ukrainian: Боденське озеро, Croatian: Bodensko jezero, Albanian: Liqeni i Bodenit. Even in many Asiatic languages, the lake is called the Bodensee e.g. Azerbaijani: Boden gölü, Tatar: Боден күле, Marathi: बोडन से Bōdana sē, Mandarin: Chinese: 波登湖; pinyin: Bódēng-hú, Korean: 보덴 호 Boden-ho, Japanese: ボーデン湖 Bōden-ko.

Location of Lake Constance within the Duchy of Swabia (yellow), 911–1268

After the Council of Constance in the 15th century, the alternative name Lacus Constantinus was used in the (Roman Catholic) Romance language area. This name, which had been attested as early as 1187 in the form Lacus Constantiensis,[4] came from the town of Konstanz at the outflow of the Rhine from the Obersee, whose original name, Constantia, was in turn derived from the Roman emperor, Constantius Chlorus (around 300 AD). Hence the French: Lac de Constance, Italian: Lago di Costanza, Portuguese: Lago de Constança, Spanish: Lago de Constanza, Romanian: Lacul Constanța, Greek: Λίμνη της Κωνσταντίας – Limni tis Konstantias. The Arabic, بحيرة كونستانس buħaira Konstans and probably the Turkish, Konstanz gölü, probably go back to the French form of the name. Even in Romance-influenced English the name "Lake Constance" gained a foothold and was then exported into other languages such as Hebrew: ימת קונסטנץ yamat Konstanz and Swahili: Ziwa la Konstanz. In many languages both forms exist in parallel e.g. Romansh: Lai da Constanza and Lai Bodan, Esperanto: Konstanca Lago and Bodenlago.

The poetic name, "Swabian Sea" was adopted by authors of the early modern era and the Enlightenment from ancient authors, possibly Tacitus. However, this assumption was based on an error (similar to that of the Teutoburg Forest and the Taunus): the Romans sometimes used the name Mare Suebicum for the Baltic Sea, not Lake Constance. In times when the Romans had located the so-called "Suebi", then an Elbe Germanic tribe near a sea, this was understandable. The authors of the Early Modern Period overlooked this and adopted the name for the largest lake in the middle of the former Duchy of Swabia, which also included parts of today's Switzerland..[9] Today the name Swabian Sea (Schwäbisches Meer) is only used jocularly as a hyperbolic term for Lake Constance.[10]

Key facts[edit]

No Paleolithic finds have been made in the immediate vicinity of the lake, because the region of Lake Constance was covered for a long time by the Rhine Glacier. The discovery of stone tools (microliths) indicate that hunters and gatherers of the Mesolithic period (Middle Stone Age, 8,000-5,500 BC) frequented the area without settling, however. Only hunting camps have been confirmed. The earliest Neolithic farmers, who belonged to the Linear Pottery culture, also left no traces behind, because the Alpine foreland lay away from the routes along which they had spread during the 6th century BC..[11] This changed only in the middle and late Neolithic when shore settlements were established, the so-called pile dwelling and wetland settlements, which have now been uncovered mainly on Lake Überlingen, the Constance Hopper aAnd on the Obersee. At Unteruhldingen, such a pile dwelling village has been reconstructed and is now accessible as a museum.

Grave finds from Singen am Hohentwiel date to the beginning of the Early Bronze Age and shore settlements were repeatedly built during the Neolithic Period and the Bronze Age (up to 800 BC. During the following Iron Age the settlement history is interrupted. The settlement of the shore of Lake Constance during the Hallstatt period is attested by grave mounds, which today are usually found in forests where they have been protected from the destruction by agriculture. Since the late Hallstatt period, the peoples living on Lake Constance are referred to as the Celts. During the La Tène period from 450 AD, the population density decreases, as can be deduced partly due from the fact that no more grave mounds were built. For the first time, we have written reports on Lake Constance that have survived. Thus, we learn that the Helvetians settled by the lake in the south, the Rhaetians in the area of the Alpine Rhine Valley and the Vindelici in the northeast. The most important places on the lake were Bregenz (Celtic Brigantion ) and today's Constance.

In the course of the Roman Alpine campaign of 16/15 BC, the Lake Constance region was integrated into the Roman Empire. During the campaign, there was also supposed to have been to a battle on Lake Constance. The geographer, Pomponius Mela, makes the first mention in 43 AD of Lake Constance as two lakes - the Lacus Venetus (Upper Lake) and the Lacus Acronius (Untersee) - with the River Rhine flowing through both. Pliny the Elder referred to Lake Constance as Lacus Brigantinus for the first time. The most important Roman site was Bregenz, which soon became subject to Roman municipal law and later became the seat of the Prefect of the Lake Constance fleet. The Romans were also in Lindau, but settled only on the hills around Lindau as the lakeshore was swampy. Other Roman towns were Constantia (Constance) and Arbor Felix (Arbon).

After the borders of the Roman Empire were drawn back to the Rhine boundary in the 3rd century BC, the Alemanni gradually settled on the north shore of Lake Constance and, later, on the south bank as well. After the introduction of Christianity, the cultural significance of the region grew as a result of the founding of Reichenau Abbey and the Bishopric of Constance. Under the rule of the Hohenstaufens, Imperial Diets (Reichstage) were held by Lake Constance. In Constance, too, a treaty was drawn up between the Hohenstaufen emperor and the Lombard League. Lake Constance also played an important role as a trading post for goods being traded between German and Italian states.

During the Thirty Years' War, there were various conflicts over the control of the region during the Lake War (1632-1648).

After the War of the Second Coalition (1798-1802), which also affected the region and during which Austrian and French flotillas operated on Lake Constance, there was a reorganisation of state relationships.

Historical maps[edit]

1540 map of the Lake Constance region
  • 1540: the map Lacus Constantiensis by Johannes Zwick and Thomas Blarer shows topographic names, towns and the River Rhine.
  • 1555: the map of the route of the Rhine (Rhinelaufkarte) by Caspar Vopel includes a topographical map of Lake Constance with its larger towns, the tributaries and the course of the Rhine.
  • 1633: the Swabian map by Johannes Janssonius, Amsterdam: Totius Sveviae novissima tabula shows Lake Constance with islands, tributaries, towns and villages.[12]
  • 1675: The Lake Constance map, Lacos Acronianus sive Bodamicus, by Nikolaus David Hautt based on Andreas Arzet SJ shows Lake Constance with the adjacent lands.[13]

Geography[edit]

Complete lake from the Winterstaude

Divisions[edit]

Lake Constance is located in the foothills of the Alps. The shore length of both main lakes is 273 kilometres long. Of this, 173 kilometres are located in Germany (Baden-Württemberg 155 km, Bavaria 18 km), 28 kilometres run through Austria and 72 kilometres through Switzerland.[14] If the Upper and Lower Lakes are combined, Lake Constance has a total area of 536 km², the third largest lake in Europe by area after Lake Balaton (594 km²) and Lake Geneva (580 km²). It is also the second largest by water volume (48.5 km³[15]) after Lake Geneva (89 km³) and extends for over 69.2 kilometres between Bregenz and Stein am Rhein. Its catchment area is around 11,500 square kilometres, and reaching as far south as Lago di Lei in Italy.[16]

The area of the Obersee is 473 km². It extends from Bregenz to Bodman-Ludwigshafen for over 63.3 kilometres and is 14 kilometres wide between Friedrichshafen and Romanshorn. At its deepest point between Fischbach and Uttwil it is 251.14 metres deep.

Lake Constance with the Island of Lindau seen from Pfänder in 2007

The three small bays on the Vorarlberg shore have their own names: the Bay of Bregenz, off Hard and Fußach is the Bay of Fussach and, west of that is the Wetterwinkel. Farther west, now in Switzerland, is the Bay of Rorschach. To the north, on the Bavarian side, is the Bay of Reutin. The railway embankment from the mainland to the island of Lindau and the motorway bridge over the lake border the so-called Little Lake (Kleiner See), which is located between the Lindau village of Aeschach and the island.

The northwestern, finger-shaped arm of the Obersee is called Lake Überlingen. It is usually regarded as a separate lake, the boundary between the Obersee and Lake Überlingen runs approximately along the line between the southeast tip of Bodanrück (the Hörnle, which belongs to the town of Konstanz) and Meersburg. The Constance Hopper lies between the German and Swiss shores east of Konstanz.

The Obersee and Untersee are connected by the Seerhein.

The Untersee, which is separated from the Obersee and from its north-west arm, Lake Überlingen, by the large peninsula of Bodanrück, has an area of 63 km². It is strongly characterised and divided into different areas by end moraines, various glacial snouts and medial moraines. These various areas of the lake have their own names. North of Reichenau Island is the Gnadensee. West of the island of Reichenau, between the peninsula of Höri and the peninsula of Mettnau is Lake Zell. North of the Mettnau lies the Markelfinger Winkel. The drumlins of the southern Bodanrück continue along the bed of these northern parts of the lake. South of the Reichenau, from Gottlieben to Eschenz, stretches the Rheinsee ("Rhine Lake") with strong Rhine river currents in places. Previously this lake part was named Lake Bernang after the village of Berlingen. On most of the maps the name of the Rheinsee is not shown, because this place is best suited for the name of the Untersee.[17]

Emergence and future[edit]

The present-day shape of Lake Constance has resulted from the combination of several factors:

  • The tectonic Lake Constance Basin between the Alps and the Jura was created in the Jurassic and Tertiary periods
  • The current Alpine Rhine was initially a tributary of the Danube.
  • Over time, the basin was captured by the High Rhine as a result of headward erosion (fluvial erosion).
    • The capture was not always only along the present Rhine valley; Lake Überlingen marks part of an older valley course.
  • The river valleys were deepened during several cold periods by the Rhine Glacier from the valley of the Alpine Rhine (glacial erosion).
  • Behind the present impressive traces of the Würm Ice Age, the effects of older cold periods can no longer be explored in any detail. Lake Constance now represents, above all, a zungenbecken or glacial lake of the Würm Glaciation.[18]
  • During a later phase of the ice age, only the Obersee was glaciated. As the glacier retreated further, the glacial meltwaters flowed out of the emerging Überlingen lake through the older more northerly valley into the present High Rhine valley.
  • Due to the advancing headward erosion, the present course of the High Rhine was finally (again) reconnected to Lake Constance.[19]

Like any glacial lake, Lake Constance will also becomed silted up by sedimentation in the near future. This process can best be observed at the mouths of the larger rivers, especially that of the Alpine Rhine. The silting up process is accelerated by ever-increasing erosion by the River Rhine and the associated reduction in the level of the lake.

Tributaries[edit]

The estuary of the Alpine Rhine on Lake Constance

The main tributary of Lake Constance is the Alpine Rhine. The Alpine Rhine and the Seerhein do not mix greatly with the waters of the lake and flow through the lakes along courses that change relatively little. There are also numerous smaller tributaries (236 in all). The most important tributaries of the Obersee are (counterclockwise) the Dornbirner Ach, Bregenzer Ach, Leiblach, Argen, Schussen, Rotach, Seefelder Aach, Stockacher Aach, Salmsacher Aach, the Aach near Arbon, Steinach, Goldach and the Old Rhine. The outflow of the Obersee is the Seerhein, which in turn is the main tributary of the Untersee. The most important tributary of the Untersee is the Radolfzeller Aach.

The ten biggest tributaries of the Obersee by discharge volume[20] with its catchment areas:[21]
River Average discharge
[m³/s] (1978–1990)		 Discharge
in %		 Catchment
[km²]		 Catchment
in %
Alpine Rhine 233 61.1 6.119 56.1
Bregenzer Ach 48 12,6 832 7.6
Argen 19 5.3 656 6.0
Old Rhine
(Rhine Valley Canal)		 12 3.1 360 3.3
Schussen 11 2.9 822 7.5
Dornbirner Ach 7.0 1.8 196 1.8
Leiblach 3,3 0.9 105 1.0
Seefelder Aach 3,2 0.8 280 2,6
Rotach 2.0 0.5 130 1.2
Stockacher Aach 1.6 0.4 221 2.0
Sum of the
10 main tributaries		 340 89.6 9.721 89.2
Total inflow 381 100.0 10.903 100.0

Because the Alpine Rhine brings with it drift from the mountains and deposits this material as sediment, the Bay of Bregenz will silt up in a few centuries time. The silting up of the entire Lake Constance is estimated to take another ten to twenty thousand years.

Outflows, evaporation, water extraction[edit]

The outflow of the Untersee is the High Rhine with the Rhine Falls at Schaffhausen. Both the average precipitation of 0.45 km³/a and evaporation which averages 0.29 km³/a cause a net change in the level of Lake Constance that is less when compared to the influence of the inflows and outflows.[22] Further quantities of lake water are extracted by municipal waterworks around the lake and the water company of Bodensee-Wasserversorgung.

Islands[edit]

The island of Mainau
Main article: List of islands in Lake Constance

In Lake Constance there are ten islands that are larger than 2,000 m².

By far the largest is the island of Reichenau in the Untersee, which belongs to the municipality of Reichenau. The former abbey of Reichenau is a UNESCO World Heritage Site due to its three early and highly medieval churches. The island is also known for its intensive cultivation of fruit and vegetables.

The island of Lindau is located in the east of the Obersee, and is the second largest island. On it is the old town and main railway station of Lindau.

The third largest island is Mainau in the southeast of Lake Überlingen. The owners, the family of Bernadotte, have set up the island as a tourist attraction and created botanical gardens and wildlife enclosures.

Relatively large, but uninhabited and inaccessible because of their status as nature reserves, are two islands off the Wollmatinger Ried: the Triboldingerbohl which has an area of 13 ha and Mittler or Langbohl which is just 3 ha in area.

Smaller islands in the Obersee are:

  • Dominican Island (Dominikanerinsel) separated by a six-metre-wide ditch from the old town of Constance which is home to the with the Steigenberger Hotel (2 ha)
  • The tiny island of Hoy near Lindau
  • The ten artificial islands on the Rhine Causeway on the Fußach side
  • The little island by the port of Romanshorn
  • The Wollschweininsel (officially Wulesaueninsle) by the Seepark in Kreuzlingen

In the Untersee are:

International borders[edit]

Lake Constance, seen from a vineyard

Lake Constance is the only area in Europe where no borders exist, because there is no legally binding agreement as to where the borders lie between Switzerland, Germany and Austria.[23] However, Switzerland holds the view that the border runs through the middle of the lake, Austria is of the opinion that the contentious area belongs to all the states on its banks, which is known as a "condominium", and Germany holds an ambiguous opinion.[24] Legal questions pertaining to ship transport and fishing are regulated in separate treaties.

Naturally, disputes arise. One concerns a houseboat which was moored in two states (ECJ c. 224/97 Erich Ciola); another concerns the rights to fish in the Bay of Bregenz. In relation to the latter, an Austrian family was of the opinion that it alone had the right to fish in broad portions of the bay. However, this was accepted neither by the Austrian courts nor by the organs and courts of the other states.[25]

Recent floods[edit]

  • A 100-year flood around June 1999 (Pfingsthochwasser 1999) raised the level about 2 metres above normal, flooding harbors and many shoreline buildings and hotels.
  • In late August 2005, heavy rain raised the level by more than 70 cm in a few days. The rains caused widespread flooding and washed out highways and railroads.


Flooding on the shore of Lake Constance, May 2013

Tourism, leisure and sports[edit]

The tourism and leisure industry is an important factor for this region. Overnight stays reached 17,56m visitors in 2012 with an turnover of about 1.9bn Euros. The same amount comes from the 70 million daily visitors that visit Lake Constance each year.[26]

Lake Constance seen from Spot satellite.

This region is known for sightseeing, water-sports, winter-sports like Skiing, summer-sports like Swimming (sport), Sailing and recreation. It is also one of the few places where modern Zeppelin airships operate and 12-14 people can take a trip above the lake around various points of interests. [27]

The lake and the region around it have a substantial touristic infrastructure as well as many attractions and points of interests. Important are especially cities like Konstanz, Überlingen, Meersburg, Friedrichshafen, Lindau and Bregenz as they are the big hubs for boating tourism. The main tourism attractions are places like Rhine Falls, one of the three biggest waterfalls in Europe, the Mainau Island and Reichenau Island (UNESCO world heritage), the pilgrimage church Birnau, castles and palaces like Salem Abbey, Meersburg Castle as well as another UNESCO world heritage site, the Pfahlbaumuseum Unteruhldingen (German for 'Stilt house museum).

In the east of the lake, the Alps are reaching almost to it thus allowing a great view over the lake. The Pfänderbahn goes from top of the mountain right down, next to the lake in Bregenz.

Biking around the lake is also possible on the 261 km long trail called "Bodensee-Radweg". It brings its visitors to the most interesting sites and goes around the whole lake. Nevertheless, various shortcuts via ferries allow shorter routes and the trail is suitable for all levels.[28] Note: There is also a trail that goes by the name "Bodensee-Rundweg".[29] This road was intended for pedestrians so biking is sometimes not suitable or allowed.

Furthermore, Lake Constance is the location for the annual Bregenzer Festspiele, a well known arts festival that also takes place on a floating stage in Bregenz. Opera and music performances generally tend to come from popular pieces and among contributors are top music bands like the Vienna Symphony Orchestra.

Islands in the lake[edit]

The three major islands are:

These are all of the islands and former islands in Lake Constance, listed from east to west:

Island Area (m²) Population Municipality Country Coordinates
1 Galgeninsel peninsula since 19th century - Lindau (Reutin district) Germany

47°33′00″N 09°42′14″E / 47.55000°N 9.70389°E / 47.55000; 9.70389 (Galgeninsel)
2 Hoy 53 - Lindau (Reutin district) Germany

47°32′57.35″N 09°41′48″E / 47.5492639°N 9.69667°E / 47.5492639; 9.69667 (Hoy)
3 Lindau 680,000 3,000 Lindau (Island district) Germany

47°32′47″N 09°41′00″E / 47.54639°N 9.68333°E / 47.54639; 9.68333 (Lindau)
4 Wasserburg peninsula since 1720 27 Wasserburg (Island district) Germany

47°34′02″N 09°37′46″E / 47.56722°N 9.62944°E / 47.56722; 9.62944 (Wasserburg)
5 Mainau 447,584 185 Konstanz (Litzelstetten district) Germany

47°42′18″N 09°11′46″E / 47.70500°N 9.19611°E / 47.70500; 9.19611 (Mainau)
6 Dominikanerinsel 18,318 21 Konstanz (Altstadt district) Germany

47°39′51″N 09°10′42″E / 47.66417°N 9.17833°E / 47.66417; 9.17833 (Dominikanerinsel)
7 Mittlerer Langbohl 31,254 - Konstanz (Industriegebiet district) Germany

47°40′18″N 09°07′32″E / 47.67167°N 9.12556°E / 47.67167; 9.12556 (Mittlerer Langbohl)
8 Triboldingerbohl 135,570 - Konstanz (Industriegebiet district) Germany

47°40′20″N 09°07′22″E / 47.67222°N 9.12278°E / 47.67222; 9.12278 (Triboldingerbohl)
9 Reichenau 4,300,000 3.200 Reichenau (Niederzell|Mittelzell|Oberzell) Germany 47°41′40″N 09°03′48″E / 47.69444°N 9.06333°E / 47.69444; 9.06333 (Reichenau)
10 Liebesinsel 300 - Radolfzell (Mettnau district) Germany

47°43′18″N 09°00′19″E / 47.72167°N 9.00528°E / 47.72167; 9.00528 (Liebesinsel)
11 Werd 15,854 9 Eschenz (Untereschenz district) Switzerland

47°39′19″N 08°52′00″E / 47.65528°N 8.86667°E / 47.65528; 8.86667 (Werd)
12 Mittleres Werdli 4,000 - Stein am Rhein Switzerland

47°39′24″N 08°51′57″E / 47.65667°N 8.86583°E / 47.65667; 8.86583 (Mittleres Werdli)
13 Unteres Werdli 6,000 - Stein am Rhein Switzerland

47°39′25″N 08°51′50″E / 47.65694°N 8.86389°E / 47.65694; 8.86389 (Unteres Werdli)
  Lake Constance Islands 5,637,079 6,400 6 municipalities    

Towns and cities at the lake[edit]

Bodensee Steamboat Hohentwiel.
View from Mount Pfänder of Bregenz and the lake (with Lindau in the background).
Reichenau seen from the German shore.
Lake Constance from Lindau
Twilight near Arbon.
The Lower Lake (Untersee).

Austria[edit]

Germany[edit]

From the entry of the Rhine, on the northern or right shore:

Switzerland[edit]

From the entry of the Rhine, on the southern or left shore:

Fishing[edit]

The lake was frozen in the years 1077 (?), 1326 (partial), 1378 (partial), 1435, 1465 (partial), 1477 (partial), 1491 (partial?), 1517 (partial), 1571 (partial), 1573, 1600 (partial), 1684, 1695, 1709 (partial), 1795, 1830, 1880 (partial), and 1963.

Approximately 1,000 tonnes (1,100 short tons) of fish were caught by 150 professional fishermen in 2001 which was below the previous ten year average of 1,200 tonnes (1,300 short tons) per year. The Lake Constance trout (Salmo trutta) was almost extinct in the 1980s due to pollution, but thanks to protective measures they have made a significant return. Lake Constance is the home of the critically endangered species of trout Salvelinus profundus,[30] and formerly also the now extinct Lake Constance whitefish (Coregonus gutturosus).[31]


See also[edit]

References[edit]

Notes

  1. ^ a b Brian Straughan, Ralf Greve, Harald Ehrentraut, Yongqi Wang (eds.). Continuum Mechanics and Applications in Geophysics and the Environment. Heidelberg: Springer, 2001. p. 380.
  2. ^ Image #432, Flying Camera Satellite Images 1999, Lloyd Reeds Map Collection, McMaster University Library.
  3. ^ 1:25,000 topographic map (Map). Swisstopo. Retrieved 2014-07-27. 
  4. ^ a b Wolf-Armin Freiherr von Reitzenstein: Lexikon schwäbischer Ortsnamen. Herkunft und Bedeutung. Verlag C. H. Beck, Munich, 2013, ISBN 978-3-406-65209-7, p. 68 ([1], p. 68, at Google Books)
  5. ^ Arno Borst: Bodensee – Geschichte eines Wortes. In: Schriften des Vereins für Geschichte des Bodenseeraums. 99/100, 1982/82, p. 500.
  6. ^ Rolf Zimmermann: Am Bodensee. Stadler Verlagsgesellschaft, Konstanz, 2004, ISBN 3-7977-0504-2, p. 5.
  7. ^ Arno Borst: Bodensee – Geschichte eines Wortes. In: Schriften des Vereins für Geschichte des Bodenseeraums. 99/100, 1982/82, pp. 501 ff.
  8. ^ Wilhelm Martens (1911) (in German), Geschichte der Stadt Konstanz, Konstanz: Gess, pp. 6–7 
  9. ^ Vgl: Karl Heinz Burmeister. Der Bodensee im 16. Jahrhundert. In: Montfort, Vierteljahreszeitschrift für Geschichte und Gegenwart Vorarlbergs. Jahrgang 2005, Heft 3, S. 228–262. pdf
  10. ^ Klaus Zintz: Der Bodensee lädt nicht nur zum Baden ein. Stuttgarter Zeitung dated 7 August 2015 (pdf scan, retrieved 9 October 2016)
  11. ^ Helmut Schlichtherle: Pfahlbauten: die frühe Besiedelung des Alpenvorlandes. In: Spektrum der Wissenschaft (publ.): Siedlungen der Steinzeit. Spektrum-der Wissenschaft-Verlagsges., Heidelberg, 1989, ISBN 3-922508-48-0, pp. 140 ff.
  12. ^ Rolf Zimmermann: Am Bodensee, Constance, 2004, endpaper and p. 112.
  13. ^ Information about the map in the virtual library, Europeana, with external link to the picture; The correct name in the title card is Lacvs Acronianvs siue Bodamicvs, the map and plan collection of the Constance Municipal Archive contains this copper print under the modernised spelling.
  14. ^ Bodensee-Daten. In: Internationale Gewässerschutzkommission für den Bodensee (publ.): Seespiegel. December 2011, p. 6.
  15. ^ Uta Mürle, Johannes Ortlepp, Peter Rey, Internationale Gewässerschutzkommission für den Bodensee (publ.): Der Bodensee: Zustand – Fakten – Perspektiven. 2nd revised edition. Bregenz, 2004, ISBN 3-902290-04-8, p. 10.
  16. ^ www.hydra-institute.com (pdf; 1.2 MB)
  17. ^ Der Bodensee: drei Teile, ein See. In: Seespiegel. Edition 20.
  18. ^ quaternary-science.publiss.net/articles/452/download Albert Schreiner: Zur Entstehung des Bodenseebeckens (Quaternary Science Journal, pdf)
  19. ^ [2] Geology of Lake Constance] at www.landeskunde-online.de. Retrieved 31 Aug 2017.]
  20. ^ Landesanstalt für Umwelt, Messungen und Naturschutz in Baden-Württemberg: Informationen zum Jahrhunderthochwasser 1999. (pdf; 24 kB)
  21. ^ Internationale Gewässerschutzkommission für den Bodensee (publ.): Der Bodensee. Zustand – Fakten – Perspektiven. IGKB, Bregenz, 2004, ISBN 3-902290-04-8, Kapitel 1.2 (pdf; 1.2 MB)
  22. ^ Cite error: The named reference Water_Protection_Commission was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  23. ^ Kahn, Daniel-Erasmus (2004). Die deutschen Staatsgrenzen: rechtshistorische Grundlagen und offene Rechtsfragen ("The German national borders: legal-historical foundations and open legal questions"). Oxford University Press. ISBN 9783161484032. 
  24. ^ Jennings, Ken (June 16, 2014) "The Borderless Black Hole in the Middle of Europe" Conde Nast Traveler
  25. ^ Mark, David and Smith, Barry, et al., "Bizarre Shapes: 100 Geographic Monsters"
  26. ^ "DWIF - dwif Wirtschaftsfaktor Tourismus Bodenseeregion". Retrieved 2017-01-02. 
  27. ^ "Zeppelinflug : Bodensee Tourismus". www.bodensee.eu. Retrieved 2017-01-02. 
  28. ^ "Bodensee-Radweg". Bodensee-Radweg (in German). Retrieved 2017-01-02. 
  29. ^ "Wandern rund um den Bodensee". www.fernwege.de. Retrieved 2016-12-30. 
  30. ^ ‘Extinct’ fish found in Lake Constance
  31. ^ Red List - Volume 1: Vertebrates (2009) - General assessment for the vertebrate groups

Further reading

  • Zimmermann, Rolf (2004) A Look at Lake Constance. Konstanz: Stadler Verlagsgesellschaft. ISBN 3-7977-0507-7. (Pictures and texts of the cities around Lake Constance).

External links[edit]

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