Zwin

Zwin

Het Zwin ( German  the Zwin ), a watercourse in Belgium ( province of West Flanders ) and the Netherlands ( province of Zeeland ), is an old river estuary into the North Sea . Until it silted up in the 16th century , it was a sea ​​arm created as a result of a storm surge in 1134, which stretched as far as Bruges and gave this important trading city of Flanders access to the sea via the canalized river Reie .

Het Zwin is also called the Swin in German and, with around 150 hectares, forms the largest nature reserve on the Belgian coast. The area extends from Knokke to the Dutch border with the municipality of Sluis , where the smaller Dutch landscape protection area of the same name, which is managed by the association Het Zeeuws Landschap , joins.
Het Zwin is especially known for its great diversity of native seabirds .

See also

• List of areas for nature or landscape protection in Belgium

Web links

Commons : Zwin  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Official website of Het Zwin (BE) ( Memento of November 16, 2011 in the Internet Archive )
• Official website of Het Zwin (NL) ( Memento of March 25, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) - only in Dutch
• Het Zwin: Website of the tourist association VVV Zeeland (German, Dutch, English)

Coordinates: 51 ° 21 ′ 50 ″  N , 3 ° 21 ′ 12 ″  E