Oostvaardersplassen
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The Oostvaarderplassen is a nature reserve in the Netherlands. Despite its age (the polder it exists in was only reclaimed in 1968) it has an international importance as a European wetland.
The Oostvaardersplassen can be divided into two areas: wet and dry. In the wet area along the Markermeer, there are large reedlands on clay, where moulting geese often feed. This area is also home to cormorants, spoonbills, white herons, white-tailed eagle and the Great Bittern, among many other animals.
The dry area was originally a nursery for willow trees. In the first year hundreds of seedlings could be found on a square metre. This led to concern that a dense woodland would develop, significantly reducing the value of the habitat for water birds. To avoid this, the park's managers have brought in a number of larger grazers to keep the are more open. These include konik, deer and Heck cattle. These big grazers are kept out in the open all year round without supplemental feeding. The ecosystem that is evolving under their influence is thought to resemble those that would have existed on European river banks and deltas prior to human disturbance.
Before they were driven to extinction in the area, large grazers included the tarpan (wild horse), wisent (European bison), red deer, elk (known as moose in North America) and aurochs (wild cattle). Since the tarpan and aurochs are extinct, Konik horses and Heck cattle act as functional equivalents, occupying a similar ecological niche. The only big grazers missing are the elk and the wisent. It is unlikely that the elk will be introduced but there is hope for the wisent as it fills a different niche from Heck cattle.
