Keuzemeersen

Another nature reserve in the shadow of civilization: in the distance you can hear the traffic on the E40, to the left you can see the villas on the banks of the Leie in Sint-Martens-Latem. But you will quickly forget all this given the magic of this nature reserve.

It consists of wet grassland that is regularly flooded. Note the many pollarded willows that have long since disappeared from other lakes around Ghent. If you are quiet you can spot shovelers, yellow wagtails, reed buntings and several lapwings.

Historically, the Keuzemeersen are a deposit area of the old Leie that meandered in a former flat valley. The Keuzemeersen are therefore located in a bend of the Leie as well as further downstream on the left bank of the Leie, where the typical meadow landscape has been preserved: small meadow plots with pollard willows, a riverbank and a fine-meshed network of ditches with associated fauna and flora. An adjustable weir regulates the water level of the central meadows. The Keuzemeersen are located near a place that is historically described as Keuze. These meadows are part of a whole of connected areas that contain the word "meers" as a name, including the Latemse Meersen, the Beelaertmeersen, the Blaarmeersen and the Bourgoyen-Ossemeersen.