nature reserve
A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...
in the
Dutch
Dutch commonly refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands
* Dutch people ()
* Dutch language ()
Dutch may also refer to:
Places
* Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States
* Pennsylvania Dutch Country
People E ...
province of
Drenthe
Drenthe () is a province of the Netherlands located in the northeastern part of the country. It is bordered by Overijssel to the south, Friesland to the west, Groningen to the north, and the German state of Lower Saxony to the east. As of Nov ...
that has been included in the
Natura 2000
Natura 2000 is a network of nature protection areas in the territory of the European Union. It is made up of Special Areas of Conservation and Special Protection Areas designated under the Habitats Directive and the Birds Directive, respectively ...
ecological network. Since 2006 it is part of the
Internationaler Naturpark Bourtanger Moor-Bargerveen
The Internationaler Naturpark Bourtanger Moor-Bargerveen (engl. Bourtanger Moor-Bargerveen International Nature Park) is a nature reserve in the west of the German state Lower Saxony as well as in the North-East of the Netherlands. Mostly this nat ...
(''engl. Bourtanger Moor-Bargerveen International Nature Park''), a nature reserve located on both sides of the border between the Netherlands and
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
. Most of the transboundary nature reserve, some , lies in Germany, in the west of the state of
Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony (german: Niedersachsen ; nds, Neddersassen; stq, Läichsaksen) is a German state (') in northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ...
. The sparsely populated landscape consists of large peat areas, heather, and small lakes.
The Dutch part of the nature reserve was founded in 1992 as ''Natuurreservaat Bargerveen''. It was designated as a
Ramsar site
A Ramsar site is a wetland site designated to be of international importance under the Ramsar Convention,8 ha (O)
*** Permanent 8 ha (P)
*** Seasonal Intermittent < 8 ha(Ts)
**
raised bog
Raised bogs, also called ombrotrophic bogs, are acidic, wet habitats that are poor in mineral salts and are home to flora and fauna that can cope with such extreme conditions. Raised bogs, unlike fens, are exclusively fed by precipitation ( ombro ...
and was coordinated by
Staatsbosbeheer
Staatsbosbeheer, founded in 1899, is a Dutch government organization for forestry and the management of nature reserves.
Staatsbosbeheer currently oversees over 250,000 hectares of land in the Netherlands. Usually this land is open to the public ...
, the government agency that manages the site. The work was supported by the European Union's
LIFE programme
The LIFE programme (French: L’Instrument Financier pour l’Environnement) is the European Union's funding instrument for the environment and climate action. The general objective of LIFE is to contribute to the implementation, updating and d ...
in the years 2003–2006, but it was noted that the full effects would be seen in the longer term.
Bargerveen has been twinned with two Irish Ramsar Sites,
Clara Bog
Clara Bog is one of the largest relatively intact raised bogs remaining in Ireland. It lies southeast of the R436 regional road between the village of Ballycumber and the town of Clara, in County Offaly.
Much of the bog is state-owned and ma ...
and
Raheenmore Bog
Raheenmore Bog is a raised bog north-west of Daingean, County Offaly, in Ireland. Since the 1980s the greater part of the bog has been maintained as a 162 hectare Nature Reserve, which is currently managed by the National Parks and Wildlife Ser ...
Special Protection Area
A Special Protection Area (SPA) is a designation under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds. Under the Directive, Member States of the European Union (EU) have a duty to safeguard the habitats of migratory birds and cert ...
for bird-life, and is home to large numbers of wintering bean geese. It is also an
Important Bird Area
An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations.
IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...
: "trigger" species are the
spotted crake
The spotted crake (''Porzana porzana'') is a small waterbird of the family Rallidae. The scientific name is derived from Venetian terms for small rails.
The spotted crake's breeding habitat is marshes and sedge beds across temperate Europe into ...
Special Area of Conservation
A Special Area of Conservation (SAC) is defined in the European Union's Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC), also known as the ''Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora''. They are to protect the 220 habitats and ap ...
.
File:Bargerveen10.jpg, Now an
insect hotel
An insect hotel, also known as a bug hotel or insect house, is a manmade structure created to provide shelter for insects. They can come in a variety of shapes and sizes depending on the specific purpose or specific insect it is catered to. Mo ...
, this house was previously occupied by a family, the last people to live at Bargerveen.
File:Bargerveen.jpg, Bargerveen Nature Reserve
File:Bargerveen nightshot1.jpg, Bargerveen Nature Reserve at night