Swamp at Oostvardesplassen. The nature reserve, is a wilderness that was constructed from reclaimed land. The reserve occupies fourteen thousand perfectly flat acres on the shore or the inlet turned lake. This area was originally designated for industry; however while it was still in the process of drying out, a handful of bioligist convinced the Dutch government that theland would be better used to recreate a paleolithic landscape. The biologist set aboutstocking the Oostverdesplassen with the sorts of animals that would have inhabited the region since prehistoric times had it not been underwater. For example, Heck cattle, were used in place by the extinct aurochs, these are cattle of a variety specially bred by Nazi scientists. The cattle grazed and multiplied, so did the red deer, the wild horses, the egrets, the geese and foxes. All were brought in from other countries. These mammals reproduced so prolifically that the German magazine Der Spiegel dubbed the Oostvaardesplassen &quot;the Serengeti behind the dikes.&quot; Flevoland, Netherlands.