The Zwin has a colony of free-ranging European white storks, which is still there although the bird park closed and was demolished over a decade ago. The storks now live in different places around the reserve.
The Zwin is a large nature reserve in Knokke-Heist, West Flanders Province, Belgium, right next to the border with the Netherlands. It is a marine reserve with a direct connection to the North Sea and tidal influence. A bird also existed next to the nature reserve. It started in 1953, shortly after the Zwin was first founded and opened as a nature reserve the year before. The bird park displayed native and European bird species. By the 21st century the bird park was badly outdated and in poor condition, resulting in the decision to close the bird park. The bird park closed in 2012 and in 2013 the remaining birds were moved to other zoological facilities. The bird park was demolished in 2013-2014 and between 2014 and 2017 was replaced by the Zwin Nature Park, a wetland nature area that is basically a small version of the dune and salt marsh habitats represented in the nearby Zwin plains nature reserve, and is a major part of the Zwin's educational and recreational purpose. The Zwin has continued to manage its European white stork colony, which started as a part of the bird park.
