Montagu's harrier
After German reunification in 1990, the government declared the entire Großes Bruch (6,000 hectares) a protected landscape to conserve its fauna. The meadows are home and breeding areas for rare birds, including the hen harrier, Montagu's harrier, Eurasian curlew, short-eared owl, common snipe, and corncrake. The little owl breeds in stands of pollarded willows.