The 87Sr/86Sr ratio in 53 water samples were analysed, 26 from streams in Sweden, 22 from streams in Finland and 5 from the Bothnian Bay itself. The brackish seawater of the bay had the isotope ratio 0.7095, while the stream-water samples varied from 0.7177 to 0.7366. The weighted average isotope ratio with respect to discharges was 0.7313, this high ratio reflecting the dominance of granitic Proterozoic rocks in the region.

For streams with an average discharge between 1-40 m3/s the isotope ratio was within the interval 0.718-0.736, while those with discharges >150 m3/s defined an interval of 0.728-0.735. The variations in isotope ratios are discussed with respect to bedrock geology of drainage basins, possible effects of seawater inundations and Postglacial uplift combined with the complex history of the Baltic Sea.

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