On March 5th at 8:15 p.m. on ORF 2
Vienna (OTS) – Windmills and tulip fields, picturesque towns and idyllic canals – that is the common description of the Netherlands. The small state on the North Sea is about half the size of Austria and is one of the most populous areas in Europe. Nevertheless, there is still room for almost untouched wilderness here: seals bask on the coast in the warm midday sun and dozens of bird species populate the seemingly endless beaches on the Wadden Sea. Wild Konik horses graze on lush green meadows, while sea eagles circle widely in the sky and fallow deer roam through the forests. Every dry patch of earth seems to be used here – after all, it is a rare commodity that has to be laboriously wrested from the sea in many areas with sophisticated dikes and barriers. The “Universe” portrait “Mysterious Netherlands – Wilderness to the Horizon” by Hans-Peter Kuttler (ORF editing: Doris Hochmayr) shows dependencies and adaptations in a wide variety of examples on Tuesday, March 5, 2024, at 8:15 p.m. on ORF 2 , cooperation and coexistence that animals and humans have developed for a life with water – and sometimes against it.
The Wadden Sea dominates the coast of the Netherlands. In its endless expanses, the boundaries between water and land blur. The tides create this special ecosystem, which is one of the most fertile natural landscapes on earth. Twice a day the low tide exposes the bottom of the North Sea and reveals an overwhelming abundance of worms, mussels and other small animals. Every year this attracts millions of migratory birds who come here from the Arctic north in autumn and from the south in spring and settle here for a few months. Even spoonbills and avocets travel all the way from Africa and the Mediterranean to breed here and on the offshore West Frisian Islands. When the tide rises on the Wadden Sea, seals move together on small headlands in the east of the coastal area. Here the animals rest and doze in the mild sun. Unless there is a dispute. Seals are basically solitary creatures and only gather in larger groups on land. The community of convenience serves to ensure safety, because seals are slow and clumsy on land. Young animals would be easy prey.
The Netherlands, which does not bear its name by chance, also has natural treasures to offer inland. More than a quarter of the country lies below sea level. Dikes and pumping stations keep the plains dry and make them habitable – and even create new living space: The province of Flevoland, about the size of Vorarlberg, is the largest artificially created land area in the world. Here are cities, huge tulip fields and the Oostvaardersplassen natural development area, where fauna and flora have been able to develop without restrictions for decades. To protect the swampy grassy plain from overgrowth, 400 Konik horses, descendants of Polish wild horse herds, are deployed. Red foxes live in the immediate vicinity. In early summer it is very convenient for the females to occasionally stumble across a carp on the green meadow during their hunting trips – there are usually four or five young ones waiting for their meal. The occasional rain of fish from the sky is thanks to sea eagles, which have only been settling here again since the early 2000s. The sea eagles find plenty of prey in the numerous bodies of water. More often than they would like, the fish slip away from their powerful clutches. Then there is fish with the red foxes.
In the east of the Netherlands, heaths and meadows characterize the landscape. The largest contiguous forest area in the country is also located here: the Veluwe. Mouflons, red deer and fallow deer roam the sparse mixed pine forests, which are plagued by increasingly long dry periods. Thanks to a large-scale reintroduction project, otters and beavers are now settled along the rivers again. Both were considered extinct in the Netherlands at the end of the 1980s. But a lot has changed since then. A rethink has taken place that is once again giving more importance to natural landscapes and their wildlife. The fight against water does not have to be fought alone in this low-lying country. Nature is also an ally: intact floodplain landscapes, for example, can store enormous amounts of water. They naturally protect against flooding, where without them additional expensive pumping and barrage systems would be necessary to keep excess water at bay.