Zwin

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Sea lavender blossoms in August-September
Sea lavender blossoms in August-September

The Zwin is a nature reserve at the North Sea coast, on the Belgian-Dutch border. It was founded in 1952. It has an area of 1.25 square kilometres in Knokke-Heist, Belgium and 0.33 square kilometres in Sluis, Netherlands.

It is famous for its large variety in salt-resistant flora, such as Sea lavender. It is also popular with bird watchers. There is a small zoo with some major domestic birds and it is one of the few places in Belgium with a population of white storks.

In the Middle Ages what is now land was a substantial arm of the North Sea that stretched to Sluis, from where canal navigation was possible to Bruges.

Another waterway of this name, the Groot Zwin, forms the canal from Bruges to Oostende.

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Coordinates: 51°21′50″N 3°21′12″E / 51.36389, 3.35333