Oostvaarderplassen, The Netherlands
Vera has been heavily
involved in Oostvaardersplassen, a 6,000ha nature reserve in the Netherlands
which has been stocked with red deer and other animal species considered to be
the best replacements for the extinct aurochs - Heck Cattle (B. taurus) – and prehistoric
horses, e.g. Konik Ponies (E.
caballus).
These herbivores have been
left to regulate themselves, largely without human intervention, under a system
of what has come to be known as ‘naturalistic grazing’. When red deer die, their carcasses are left
and these have become an important source of food for the white-tailed eagles
that moved into the reserve in 2006 and have subsequently been breeding in the
area. Certainly biodiversity within the
reserve has increased and it has become a haven for wildlife and an influential
exemplar of conservation management.
The problem with the
‘naturalistic grazing’ practiced at Oostvaardersplassen is that there are no
predators which must surely be viewed as an equally important part of a
functioning ecosystem.