Something different this week, not a marine related post, but a post about a very interesting and unique nature area in the Netherlands. Last week I was on holiday with my parents to the south-east of the Netherlands, the province of North-Brabant. We were in the Meuse valley (Maas vallei) within this valley lies the Maasheggen, this is a small area of cultivated fields and meadows surrounded by a mosaic of hedgerows of Hawthorns. Unfortunately this spring has been colder then recent years, which meant that the Hawthorns weren't yet in bloom except for a couple of plants. If you come here in the right time the hedges will be completely white with flowers. The right time can be from mid- April to mid-May all weather dependent. The Maasgheggen are so unique they have been designated as a man and biosphere UNESCO site. It’s the only man and biosphere UNESCO site in the Netherlands.
What makes the Maasheggen so special?
With a quick glance it looks just like any regular field or meadow it’s just surrounded by hedges instead of fences. But when you take a closer look at the hedges you see something interesting. The hedges are actually woven, the weaving of the hedges has been done here for centuries. The Maasheggen are the oldest cultivated landscape of the Netherlands. Once it covered an area of 15.000 hectares now its just 2000 hectares. But in these hectares you can see the history all the way back to the prehistory. The bicycle paths through the Maasheggen were laid by the Romans. In the Roman time these were important roads between the most important cities of the Netherlands at that time: Maastricht and Nijmegen. In the town of Cuijk there is even an Roman museum, unfortunately due to the pandemic museums are still closed for the moment.
The weaving of the hedges is something that still happens to this day, the practice is called ''hedge laying''. This practice has been added in the Dutch national inventory of immaterial cultural heritage. There are even annual national hedge laying championships. Through these championships the practice is kept alive and serves as an educational purpose.
These hedges divide the meadows, however the hedges also connect. There are many different animals that live within the hedges. Many birds feed and nest within the hedges as they give natural protection against predators. Examples of bird species are robins, common whitethroat, common redstart, bullfinches, yellowhammers and little owls. The Maasheggen are also an important area for badgers, it is actually an important nursery habitat for the badgers of Noord-Brabant. I had really hoped to see a badger during our stay in the area. Unfortunately the weather was quite bad with lots of rain and wind, so not the best weather to go out late and try and spot some badgers. During our walks through the area and the meadows we did see some potential badger footprints. but again rain made it difficult to really put an identification on these prints.
Besides meadows there are also various ponds and these ponds are important for various amphibians like the northern crested newt and frogs.
The importance of UNESCO man & biosphere areas
The UNESCO man & biosphere also known as the MAB programme and focusses on natural and dynamic areas where humans and nature co-exist. In these areas economic activity, conservation, public recreation, entrepreneurship, nature, and ecology go hand-in-hand. You can see this by the woven hedges for example, because they are woven fences aren't necessary any more to keep kettle in their fields. And because of the use of hedges as fences this gives a chance for other animals to thrive. But because people live and recreate in the Maasheggen the area is always in development. But this development always keeps nature on the first place. The local people, schools, businesses and governments (organisations) are forming collectives to develop the Maasheggen in a sustainable way. The farmers in the area maintain traditional agriculture or try and reinvent modern agriculture techniques. Further the conservation efforts are increasing, with the State Forestry Department which is working on the improving and expending of the habitat for certain key species that live in the Maasheggen. Examples of these key species are the little owl, red-backed shrike, partridge, northern crested newt and the brown hairstreak (a species of butterfly). There are also researches going on into biodiversity.
And people are allowed to recreate in the Maasheggen, there are bicycle routes and hiking trails. Some of the hiking trails also go through the meadows themselves. I really loved to walk through the Maasheggen as previously I hadn't really heard about the area or the UNESCO man & biosphere status. But I can tell you that it is a beautiful landscape to walk through, even though the rain and wind made these walks quite cold. There is so much to see especially the wildlife like the birds who are everywhere. But I found trying to photograph them quite tricky, guess that is a slight down side of the woven hedges, the birds really are protected. I would love to go back someday and see the hawthorn in bloom and try and spot badgers. Badgers are a mammal species that for me is very high on the list of animals I want to see in the wild.
The Maasheggen is situated right next to the river the Meuse (Maas) this river is prone to flooding which means if it has been very wet in either the Netherlands or higher up in the river the Maasheggen could potentially be very muddy.
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