Along the shore of Lake IJsselmeer there are three nature reserves on the sandflats outside the dykes. When Lake IJsselmeer was still the Zuiderzee, these coastal sandflats were flooded by the tides.
Now they are part of Lake IJsselmeer and are overgrown with vegetation. The Makkumerzuidwaard and Makkumernoordwaard nature reserves run along the shore near the village of Makkum, where the reclaimed land, now populated with reeds, is a beautiful protected area. The footpath that leads to the Makkumerzuidwaard nature reserve is closed during the breeding season. The reserve supports a wide variety of herbs and in the spring, it is awash with yellow marsh-marigold flowers. The conditions are ideal not only for plants such as hemp-agrimony and meadowsweet, but also for many water birds such as various species of swans.
