countries of Austria, Germany, and Switzerland meet. Beyond areas less than deep, considered to be under the jurisdiction of the nearest country, there is no legally binding agreement as to where the borders lie between the three countries. 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. Legal questions pertaining to ship transport and fishing are regulated in separate treaties. Disputes occasionally 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. Floods 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 in a few days. The rains caused widespread flooding and washed out highways and railroads. Ecology Flora Until the 19th century, Lake Constance was a natural lake. Since then, nature has been heavily influenced by clearing and the cultivation of much of the land around its shores. However, some near-natural areas have been largely conserved, especially in the nature reserves, or were re-naturalised. As a result, the Lake Constance region has some unusual ecological features. These include the large forested area on the Bodanrück, the occurrence of marsh gentian and orchids of the genera Dactylorhiza and Orchis in the Wollmatinger Ried, and the Siberian iris (Iris sibirica) in the Eriskircher Ried, which was therefore given its own name. One unique species among the local flora is the Lake Constance forget-me-not (Myosotis rehsteineri), whose habitat is restricted to undisturbed limestone gravel beaches. Fauna Birds Lake Constance is also the home of numerous bird species, many of which nest in its nature reserves, such as the Wollmatinger Ried or the Mettnau peninsula. 412 species have so far been recorded. Songbirds The ten most common breeding bird species at Lake Constance according to a 2000–2003 survey in