Editing Vestfold (section)

==Fauna==
[[File:Lynx lynx2.jpg|upright|thumb|European Lynx is found throughout Vestfold, including Tønsberg and Sandefjord.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.tb.no/nyheter/gaupa-er-ikke-farlig-1.7142450?ns_campaign=article&ns_mchannel=recommend_button&ns_source=facebook&ns_linkname=facebook&ns_fee=0|title=– Gaupa er ikke farlig|date=21 March 2012|website=www.tb.no}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.tb.no/nyheter/viltnemnda-radyr-trolig-drept-av-gaupe-1.7141229?ns_campaign=article&ns_mchannel=recommend_button&ns_source=facebook&ns_linkname=facebook&ns_fee=0|title=Viltnemnda: Rådyr trolig drept av gaupe|date=20 March 2012|website=www.tb.no}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nordlys.no/nyheter/article7203853.ece?ns_campaign=article&ns_mchannel=recommend_button&ns_source=facebook&ns_linkname=facebook&ns_fee=0|title=Skjøt 20-kilos gaupe - skal lage øreringer av tennene|date=2 March 2014|website=www.nordlys.no}}</ref><ref name="nrk.no">{{Cite web|url=https://www.nrk.no/vestfold/gaupe-i-sandefjord-1.277821|title=Gaupe i Sandefjord|date=6 August 2004|website=NRK}}</ref><ref name="sb.no">{{Cite web|url=https://www.sb.no/nyheter/spor-etter-gaupe-i-veggeskogen/s/5-60-49729?ns_campaign=article&ns_mchannel=recommend_button&ns_source=facebook&ns_linkname=facebook&ns_fee=0|title=(+) Spor etter gaupe i Veggeskogen|date=3 February 2016|website=[[Sandefjords Blad]]}}</ref>]]
Vestfold's fauna includes species such as the [[White-tailed eagle]], [[Roe deer]], [[Moose]], [[European hedgehog]], [[Eurasian eagle-owl]], [[Mountain hare]], [[European badger]], [[European pine marten]], and [[Norway lemming]]. Rare observations of [[Gray wolf]], [[European lynx]],<ref name="nrk.no" /><ref name="sb.no" /> and [[Brown bear]] do occur.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.miljodirektoratet.no/ansvarsomrader/vilt/|title=Vilt - Miljødirektoratet|website=Miljødirektoratet/Norwegian Environment Agency|access-date=6 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190510183530/https://www.miljodirektoratet.no/ansvarsomrader/vilt/|archive-date=10 May 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> A wolf shot in [[Lardal]] in 2013 was the first wolf killed in the county in over 100 years.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.tb.no/nyheter/ulv-trolig-oppdaget-i-sandefjord-1.8196625?ns_campaign=article&ns_mchannel=recommend_button&ns_source=facebook&ns_linkname=facebook&ns_fee=0|title=Ulv trolig oppdaget i Sandefjord|date=4 December 2013|website=www.tb.no}}</ref> Between 700 and 800 moose are annually hunted in Vestfold.<ref name="snl.no" /> [[Larvik]] has one of the highest numbers of moose in Norway.<ref name="https://snl.no/Larvik" />

The [[Harbor seal]] is the most commonly observed species of seal in Vestfold, and it was estimated to be at minimum 183 seals in Vestfold as of August 2014.<ref>https://prosjekt.fylkesmannen.no/Documents/Jomfruland/Dokument/Rapporter/Minirapport%20om%20sel%20i%20forbindelse%20med%20arbeidet%20med%20Jomfruland%20nasjonalpark.pdf {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612144013/https://prosjekt.fylkesmannen.no/Documents/Jomfruland/Dokument/Rapporter/Minirapport%20om%20sel%20i%20forbindelse%20med%20arbeidet%20med%20Jomfruland%20nasjonalpark.pdf |date=12 June 2018 }} (Page 2).</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.sb.no/nyheter/15-steinkobber-skal-skytes/s/5-73-9843?ns_campaign=article&ns_mchannel=recommend_button&ns_source=facebook&ns_linkname=facebook&ns_fee=0|title=15 steinkobber skal skytes|date=22 December 2014|website=[[Sandefjords Blad]]}}</ref> Dolphins are uncommon, however, a [[Common bottlenose dolphin]] was observed by [[Nøtterøy]] in 2014,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.tb.no/nyheter/her-far-jon-en-opplevelse-han-sent-vil-glemme-1.8550362?ns_campaign=article&ns_mchannel=recommend_button&ns_source=facebook&ns_linkname=facebook&ns_fee=0|title=Her får Jon en opplevelse han sent vil glemme|date=20 August 2014|website=www.tb.no}}</ref> and a [[Striped dolphin]] was observed the same summer at [[Helgeroa]] in [[Larvik]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nrk.no/vestfold/se-delfin-pa-svommetur-1.11830942|title=Se delfin på svømmetur|first=Susann J.|last=Rismyhr|date=14 July 2014|website=NRK|access-date=11 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150915173012/http://www.nrk.no/vestfold/se-delfin-pa-svommetur-1.11830942|archive-date=15 September 2015|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[Common European Viper]] is the only venomous snake found in Norway.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://snl.no/hoggorm|title=hoggorm|first1=Jon Kristian|last1=Skei|first2=Espen|last2=Knutsen|date=16 May 2019|via=[[Great Norwegian Encyclopedia]]|access-date=6 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190524191353/https://snl.no/hoggorm|archive-date=24 May 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> There are two non-venomous snake species in Vestfold County: [[European grass snake]] and [[European smooth snake]].<ref>Larsen, Erlend (2012). ''På tur i Vestfold: Del 2''. E-forlag. Page 10. {{ISBN|9788293057222}}.</ref>

Vestfold has a rich [[avifauna]]: over 130 bird species have been observed in [[Svelvik]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://snl.no/Svelvik|title=Svelvik|first1=Geir|last1=Thorsnæs|first2=Sten|last2=Lundbo|date=5 March 2019|via=[[Great Norwegian Encyclopedia]]|access-date=6 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190521070627/https://snl.no/Svelvik|archive-date=21 May 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> while [[Mølen]] in [[Larvik]] has the national record of 320 species.<ref name="vestfold.guide">{{Cite web|url=https://vestfold.guide/mlen-rullesteinstrand|title=Vestfoldguide — Mølen rullesteinstrand|website=Vestfoldguide|access-date=11 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612143823/https://vestfold.guide/mlen-rullesteinstrand/|archive-date=12 June 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Wildlife refuge===
[[Saltstein]] is part of a protected habitat for birds.<ref name="Saltstein">{{Cite web|url=https://www.aftenposten.no/article/ap-G1kwV.html|title=Løsning for omstridte bølger|first=Ntb Tore|last=Meek|website=Aftenposten|date=27 December 2013 }}</ref> From 2014 [[surfing]] was permitted off Saltstein.<ref name="Saltstein" />

Besides being an [[UNESCO Global Geopark]], [[Mølen]] in [[Larvik]] is a habitat for a variety of rare bird species.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://snl.no/M%C3%B8len_-_i_Larvik|title=Mølen – i Larvik|first=Lars|last=Mæhlum|date=11 June 2018|via=[[Great Norwegian Encyclopedia]]|access-date=6 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612141419/https://snl.no/M%C3%B8len_-_i_Larvik|archive-date=12 June 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> Mølen became a protected sanctuary for birds in 1970.<ref name="vestfoldguide.no" /> 320 species of birds have been recorded at Mølen, more species than at any other site in Norway.<ref name="vestfold.guide" /><ref>Nord, Einar and Gunnar Christie Wasberg (1999). ''Magiske Mølen''. Larvik og omegns turistforening. Page 85. ISBN 8299524903.</ref>

Wildlife preserves include Melsom- and [[Hemskilen]] Wildlife Preserves. Hemskilen Wildlife Preserve lies on the [[Larvik]]-[[Sandefjord]] border and is an important habitat for [[shorebirds]], [[geese]], and [[Passerines]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.fylkesmannen.no/Vestfold/Miljo-og-klima/Verneomrader/Vestfolds-verneomrader/Hemskilen-naturreservat/ |title=Hemskilen naturreservat - Fylkesmannen i Vestfold |access-date=27 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180615004432/https://www.fylkesmannen.no/Vestfold/Miljo-og-klima/Verneomrader/Vestfolds-verneomrader/Hemskilen-naturreservat/ |archive-date=15 June 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref> Melsom Plant- and Wildlife Preserve in Sandefjord is home to various older oaks, some of them home to as many as 1,500 different species of insects.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://faktaark.naturbase.no/?id=VV00002454|title=Naturbase faktaark|website=faktaark.naturbase.no|access-date=6 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180627202036/http://faktaark.naturbase.no/?id=VV00002454|archive-date=27 June 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> Marøyskjæra Bird Preserve consists of two skerries west of [[Natholmen]] Island, which have been important nesting areas for [[Common tern]] and [[Common gull]] since the 1980s. Over 500 seagulls hatched on the islets in the 1990s.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.fylkesmannen.no/Vestfold/Miljo-og-klima/Verneomrader/Vestfolds-verneomrader/Maroyskjara-fuglefredningsomrade/ |title=Marøyskjæra fuglefredningsområde - Fylkesmannen i Vestfold |access-date=27 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612143506/https://www.fylkesmannen.no/Vestfold/Miljo-og-klima/Verneomrader/Vestfolds-verneomrader/Maroyskjara-fuglefredningsomrade/ |archive-date=12 June 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.fylkesmannen.no/Documents/Dokument%20FMVE/Milj%C3%B8%20og%20klima/Verneomr%C3%A5der-PDF/Mar%C3%B8yskj%C3%A6ra-fuglefredningsomr%C3%A5de/Sandefjord-Maroeyskjaera-fuglefredningsomraade-Natur-i-Vestfold-2014.pdf |title=Archived copy |website=www.fylkesmannen.no |access-date=30 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612140740/https://www.fylkesmannen.no/Documents/Dokument%20FMVE/Milj%C3%B8%20og%20klima/Verneomr%C3%A5der-PDF/Mar%C3%B8yskj%C3%A6ra-fuglefredningsomr%C3%A5de/Sandefjord-Maroeyskjaera-fuglefredningsomraade-Natur-i-Vestfold-2014.pdf |archive-date=12 June 2018 |url-status=dead}}</ref>