The Soestpolder nature reserve lies between the town of Burgum and Burgumer Mar Lake.
The polders were drained by local monks in 1564 and the reclaimed land was used for farming. Besides attending to their religious duties, the monks were skilled hydraulic engineers who left their mark on the landscape.
Today the nature reserve is managed by a rural nature conservation agency that preserves this man-made landscape with its hay meadows, tall-herb vegetation and reed beds. The man-made grasslands are an important habitat for meadow birds. Other parts of the reserve attract water birds and waders, such as the Eurasian bittern, the bearded reedling and the great egret. An artificial nesting bank has been constructed for sand martins to breed in. The reserve is also known for its dragonflies.
When water levels are high, Soestpolder serves as a water buffer.
Section 2 of the Bonifatius Kloosterpad, the St Boniface monastery route in Friesland, passes through the reserve.
