Andre Harder, head of Russower Landbau und Haffrind, checks on his water buffaloes in a farm field in Russow, Germany.

By Juergen Drewes

When spreading reeds began infesting coastal wetlands near the German community of Neubukow, residents looked to Asia for a way to restore the environmental balance.
The marsh at the edge of the Baltic Sea used to be a breeding ground for seabirds, but the reeds were choking it.
At first, preservationists had tried machines to rip out the reeds, but these were unable to provide a long-term solution.
Then they got creative. They got Asian water buffaloes.
Now vacationers visiting the area for a walk along the coastline have to prepare themselves for a possible encounter with a herd of buffaloes, often knee deep in the marsh-water, curved horns, shaggy black hide and all.
It’s all the same to the buffaloes, who barely pay attention to the gawking bystanders.
After all, they’re busy chewing away. Eating. Eating everything in sight, from the reeds to the rushes to the hard grasses. Not even the thistles are safe.
“This is the exact reason we got the buffalo,” says Andre Harder, head of the agricultural company Russower Landbau und Haffrind.
Water buffaloes have wide hooves that don’t sink in swamps and they are not picky eaters like their distant Holstein cow cousins.
The animals arrived a year ago from a German speciality breeder. Their reputation for chewing up problem grasses quickly spread.
“They do really good work. Taking care of the countryside is pretty much impossible without these buffaloes in these parts,” says Thomas Moehring, who monitors animals in the region west of the port of Rostock.
Among the biggest winners out of the experiment are the waterfowl which have gained back their nesting sites near the Salzhaff saltwater lagoon.
Bjoern Schwake, head of the Environmental and Natural Protection Foundation of the state of Mecklenburg Vorpommern, said he had been watching the reed encroachment with worry for years. The arrival of the buffaloes has given him some hope.
Harder says the scheme almost didn’t work, noting that the local land authority had refused to hand over the grazing land for less than the market price.
“We couldn’t participate for purely financial reasons.” It was only when Schwake’s foundation provided backing that the preservationists managed to purchase the land so they could conserve it as a marsh with the help of the buffalo.
“We thought the price was unacceptable, but we finally decided to buy it out of an interest in saving the bird species and because we could lease it long-term for agriculture,” said Schwake. Schwake and Harder say they’ve come up with an exemplary method to balance the needs of farmers and environmentalists with their scheme.
Finding ways to sustain and make use of such wetlands is an environmental prerogative for Germany, especially since scientists at the nearby University of Greifswald won a prize two years ago for proving that it is possible to farm the marsh while also preserving the environment.
For that balance to be achieved, the wetlands can’t be drained and farmers have to plant appropriate crops. That means no maize and no rapeseed.
“I would never have thought it would work so fast,” says Harder. “The birds practically fly in behind the buffalos.”
The buffaloes seem to be adapting fine. Some are even calving. Northern Europe’s bitterly cold winters don’t seem to faze the Asian breed.
Only when the waters get too high or ice and snow make staying outside too treacherous does the herd of 40 get moved to a stable. Once spring shows its face, they’re taken back out to the reeds to control them and free up more space.
“We hope that birds that have been on the endangered species list will roost here again,” says Schwake. Gulls and waders are among the species.
And this project might just be the start. A businessman from western Germany has just set up a company based on water buffaloes, paying out 1 million euros (1.06 million dollars). He’s one of many. In a country where one wouldn’t expect to find water buffaloes, there are now 30 companies managing 1,000 of the animals. -DPA