A total of 2,320 red deer currently live in the Oostvaardersplassen, according to a count by forestry association Staatsbosbeheer. Due to the reclassification of the nature reserve, only 490 of them can stay there. The other 1,830 red deer will have to be culled or moved, NU.nl reports.
The province of Flevoland wants to cull the 1,830 red deer, because relocation is too stressful for the animas. Six nature organizations are trying to stop that in lawsuit. The court will rule later on Monday.
The Krabbeplas near Vlardingen was closed for swimming on Wednesday after the discovery of thousands of dead fish in the lake. They likely died due to the heat, RTV Rijnmond reports.
Passersby saw the dead fish floating in the lake on Wednesday morning and called Staatsbosbeheer, which decided to close down the area around the lake. Visitors were already warned against swimming in the lake due to blue-green algae.
Samples were taken from the lake, to find out why the fish died.
A wolf has repeatedly been spotted in nature reserves in central Drenthe over the past months. According to forestry association Staatsbosbeheer, this could be a sign that the animal may be settling down in the Netherlands. Though this will only be confirmed if every sighting was the same wolf, and if it stays in the same area for more than six months.
Foresters shot and killed three red deer on the A6 highway between Lelystad and Almere on Sunday afternoon. The animals escaped from Oostvaardersplassen after activists cut the nature reserve's fences in 21 places on Saturday night, NU.nl reports.
According to the foresters, the animals endangered traffic safety. They were shot after permission from the authorities. A spokesperson for forestry association Staatsbosbeheer told NU.nl that all three killed animals were pregnant females.
A woman was injured and five people were arrested during a protest at the visitor center of nature reserve Oostvaardersplassen near Lelystad on Sunday. The woman was hurt by a police baton, and the five people were arrested for breaking open a gate at the closed visitor center, AD and ANP report.
The organization Wolves in The Netherlands is hanging a few dozen camera traps along the border to try and capture images of wolves who may be crossing over the border. The motion-sensitive cameras are being positioned in strategic areas to pin down where wolves could be roaming the country.
Netherland's highest point is located on the Vaalser berg (Vaals hill) in South Limburg, but at a different location than at the current marker, according to Staatsbosbeheer (National Forestry).
